


Promise You Won't Let Go

by lucybeee



Category: Fruits Basket, Fruits Basket (Anime 2019), Fruits Basket - Takaya Natsuki (Manga)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-02
Updated: 2020-11-15
Packaged: 2021-03-03 19:06:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 15
Words: 28,857
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24500536
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lucybeee/pseuds/lucybeee
Summary: Kyo has noticed a change in Tohru lately. She's not happy, that much is obvious. Tohru is suffering silently, and refuses to tell Kyo what's going on. She doesn't want him to leave her. Will they be able to learn to communicate and mend their relationship once Tohru reveals her secret? (TWs for later chapters, but I'll make them very clear)
Relationships: Honda Tohru/Sohma Kyou
Comments: 16
Kudos: 135





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: Hi! I'm Lucy. This is my first Furuba fanfic. I wanted to read something that explores the darker side of Tohru, but couldn't find what I was looking for, so I decided to write it instead. :) There will be trigger warnings for future chapters, but I'll be sure to warn you beforehand.
> 
> Context: I'm still in the process of reading the manga, so my timeline might be a little off. So try to think of this as slightly AU lol. The curse is broken, but the gang is still in high school and living in Shigure's house.
> 
> I write for a living, so I hope this isn't too bad, lol. Reviews are appreciated, good or bad!

Tohru sprang to a sitting position in bed, panting. Her mouth was dry, palms sweaty, vision foggy. She forced herself to close her mouth and inhale through her nose to calm her breathing. Once it was under control, she rubbed at her eyes, erasing any leftover traces of sleepiness. She glanced to her right, looking at the alarm clock on her bedside table. 5:30. Everyone else was probably still asleep, but only for the next half hour or so. Tohru knew lying back down would be futile after a nightmare like the one she'd just had, so she stood and gathered her school uniform, padding out into the hallway towards the bathroom.

Considering how her morning had started, Tohru actually felt pretty good while she showered. Once she had finished, she pressed at her hair with the towel, trying to get as much water out as possible. Then, she put on her school uniform and took a look at herself in the mirror. As soon as she caught sight of her pale face, she stumbled backwards a couple of steps until her back slammed into the bathroom door. She felt her mouth open again, and her breath quickened. She reached up to cover her mouth with a hand in a desperate attempt to stop the hyperventilating, but couldn't get her trembling hand high enough to reach.

Not again… she pleaded, sliding down the door until she was on the tile floor, knees against her chest. The crying came next, sobs shaking her thin body as she sat in a ball on the bathroom floor.

About an hour later, Kyo sat on the floor in front of the table, watching Tohru's back as she cooked. She wasn't humming or dancing around like she usually did. She had been doing that less and less lately. Now, she seemed incredibly focused on chopping the vegetables, something that should be a rather simple task. Kyo stood up and headed into the kitchen, watching from the doorway now to get a better look at Tohru. His orange eyes narrowed slightly as he stared at her. She was focusing so intently on cutting the vegetables because her hands were shaking terribly.

"Are you all right?" Kyo asked, approaching her. He knocked a fist on her head gently, an action that had become a sign of affection between the two of them.

"Hm?" she put a hand to her head where Kyo's hand had just been, and turned to look at the boy. "Y-yeah, I'm fine. Don't worry about me."

He might have believed her if she had smiled when she said that, but she didn't. Her face was blank, and she quickly looked away from him, going back to cutting food.

Kyo sighed, knowing something was clearly wrong. He would pry more later. But for right now, the priority was getting breakfast cooked without Tohru accidentally injuring herself. Kyo reached over and put his hand on hers, taking the knife. He scooted over in front of the cutting board, shoving Tohru over gently with his hip. He leaned down and placed a quick kiss on her temple. "Just go sit down. I can do this."

"N-no, Kyo-kun…"

"I don't want ya chopping a finger off," Kyo explained, studying Tohru's face again for a minute before looking down at the pepper on the cutting board. "Your hands are shaking."

Tohru glanced down at her hands, then balled them into fists around the hem of her skirt.

"Thank you," she whispered, and she turned and went into the main room, sitting on the floor where Kyo had just been. Kyo finished chopping the pepper and turned around, about to ask Tohru what she was intending to do with it. But when he saw her, he couldn't say anything. Her face was down, and her hair was covering her profile, so he couldn't see the expression she was making. But he could see her hands. Her elbows were on the table, and her hands were in front of her face, as if she was just staring at them. They were still trembling, so badly in fact, that Kyo wondered for a moment if he needed to call Hatori. What was going on with her?

Tohru felt Kyo's gaze on her, but couldn't force herself to look at him. She ground her teeth to keep back tears. She wanted to tell him. She wanted to tell him so badly that it physically hurt, but she couldn't. She was broken, and if he saw that, he would leave her. She was certain of it. She couldn't let that happen. After all, he was already the only one left.

That afternoon, Tohru told Yuki and Kyo that she had a work shift scheduled, and that she would be home late. Yuki said he'd meet her at her work building to walk her home around 10:30. Tohru agreed reluctantly, and let Kyo peck her cheek before the two boys left towards the house. Instead of going to work, Tohru walked a few blocks further until she reached a tall building filled with doctor's offices. After a ride up to the fourth floor and a short stop in the waiting room, Tohru was sitting on an exam table with a doctor listening to her heart and lungs.

"Well, Tohru," the woman said, stepping away and sitting down at her computer. "You seem really healthy. I know we were worried about a few things after the event, but none of those have transpired. Your body is healing nicely."

That, at least, was a relief to Tohru. She didn't have anything to be worried about anymore. She inhaled shakily and nodded at the doctor, trying her best to force a smile.

The doctor returned the solemn smile. Tohru could tell that the doctor pitied her, and while she didn't like it, she supposed it was to be expected.

"I do have one question, though," the doctor said, breaking the rather tense silence in the room. "How are you doing emotionally? Have you been having any anxiety or depression?"

"Nope," Tohru blurted without really thinking. "I've been fine. I'm just...trying to get back to normal."

"Have you told any family or friends about what happened to you?"

Tohru shook her head.

"Are you embarrassed to?"

"N-no...I just…" Tohru trailed off, unsure of what to say next. She hadn't told anyone because she didn't want to bother them with her problems, and she didn't want them to worry about her. Worse had happened to her, and she had gotten through it all alone. So she could get through this alone, too.  
"I highly suggest talking to someone about this. I can refer you to a therapist, if you'd like."

"Uh...could I have some time to think about it?"

"Of course," the doctor replied, standing and patting Tohru's knee kindly. "I'll have them schedule your next appointment at the front desk, and we can talk about it more then."

As Tohru walked to work, she pondered how she could tell Kyo about what happened. She wanted their relationship to grow, and it couldn't be kept a secret forever. But how? He would be so angry. She could practically see his orange eyes narrowing, his sharp, catlike teeth being bared, his fists clenched at his sides as he tried to decide what to punch a hole into. Just the mental image made Tohru want to cry.

Once she was safely inside her work building, she went to the employee room to change into her uniform, but instead found herself sinking onto the floor, struggling to catch her breath. It was getting worse. This was the second time today. How could she keep living like this?

"Tohru?" a small, concerned voice called out.

Tohru jumped in surprise and turned towards the door. A pensive-looking Momiji was standing there, his big golden eyes staring straight into her soul.

"Tohru, are you alright? What are you doing on the floor?" he asked, taking a few steps closer.

"Oh, I...I dropped something," Tohru fibbed, and shakily got to her feet.

"Are you feeling alright? Should I call Kyo?"

"N-no!" Tohru begged, her voice coming out sounding much more desperate than she meant it to. "Please don't do that. Really, I'm fine. Ready to get to work?"

Momiji watched her for a moment, uncertainty written all over his face, but he then turned and walked back to the main room, waiting for Tohru to get changed.

They cleaned for about half an hour, Momiji cracking jokes, trying to get Tohru to smile. But she seemed unusually focused. It were as if she thought she would break down if she reacted to anything Momiji said, or even looked or smiled at him.

"Tohru," a firm voice said from behind them. Momiji cringed slightly, silently begging Tohru not to hate him. He scurried off, leaving Tohru and the new visitor alone.

"K-Kyo? What are you doing here?"

"Momiji called me," Kyo said, taking a step forward. "Tohru, I need you to tell me what's wrong. Right now."

Tohru inhaled sharply. This was all happening so suddenly. She couldn't tell him now, not here, at work. But she had a feeling that he wasn't going to take no for an answer, either.

As Tohru came to terms with what she was about to say, the dust rag she had been holding slipped from between her fingers, landing on the floor. Tohru's knees gave, and she slumped onto the floor next to it, a strangled sob escaping her throat.

"I'm so sorry…" she whispered.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the comments and kudos! I'm not sure how many chapters this story will have. I currently have 6 written and am definitely still going, so I hope you'll all stick with me! <3 ~Lucy
> 
> TRIGGER WARNING: Mentions of rape, but nothing graphic.

Tohru didn’t know how many minutes had passed since Kyo got here, since she told him everything. All she knew was that she was still on her knees, staring blankly at the floor in front of her, and that Kyo had sunk down onto a nearby couch in the lobby they were in. Tohru inhaled deeply and forced herself to look at Kyo, but only for a second. 

When Tohru had been walking earlier and imagined Kyo’s reaction, this wasn’t what she had envisioned at all. Instead of angry, he looked...numb. His elbows were on his knees, and he was bent over at the waist. The way his head was, his bangs hid his eyes, but Tohru could still see his mouth, which was taut and in a straight line. It was impossible to know what he was thinking. Was he angry? Tohru hated it when he’d get mad and lash out at whatever item was within reach, but for a moment, she pleaded silently for him to do that. To punch or kick something. This quiet, numb-looking Kyo was even scarier than temperamental Kyo. Scarier than his true form back when the curse was still intact. Scarier than any of him Tohru had ever seen.

Finally, Kyo sat up straight and turned to Tohru. “Come here,” he said, his voice hoarse, hand reaching out to her. Her gaze still planted on the tile below her, Tohru flinched. Suddenly, Kyo was on the floor with her, his hand on her shoulder. When she jumped at the contact, Kyo inhaled sharply. Was she afraid of him? He grappled with indecision for a moment, caught between not wanting to scare Tohru and wanting to comfort her. After a moment, he wrapped his arms around her thin frame and pulled her to him.

A sound somewhere between a whimper and a sob escaped from the girl’s lips, and Kyo squeezed her a little tighter. As Tohru cried, Kyo stroked her hair affectionately, staring blankly ahead of him. Now that he was really holding her, he was realizing that she seemed thin. She had always been small, but this was different. Had she lost weight, or was she just paranoid about everything now? 

“You’re not...mad at me?” Tohru choked out after a bit. 

An indescribable emotion came over Kyo in that moment. He struggled, trying desperately to identify it. He was confused, and hurt. Mostly, he was so sorry. Sorry that she had gone through this, and that he hadn’t been there to protect her. “Tohru...how could I be mad at you for something like this?” 

“Because I was stupid,” Tohru sobbed, clinging to Kyo’s t-shirt. “I was stupid, and I got myself into this huge mess.” 

Kyo clenched his jaw, and through gritted teeth, said, “You’re  _ not _ stupid.” 

He pulled away from her enough to see her face. He took both hands and cupped her cheeks. “You’re not stupid,” he repeated, fighting back his own tears. “This isn’t your fault.” 

Footsteps echoed behind the pair, and Kyo turned to see a coworker of Tohru’s walk into the room. The woman eyed them suspiciously, but then just turned and worked on cleaning one of the giant windows that provided a view of the city. Kyo faced Tohru again and asked, “Can I take you home?” He knew she wouldn’t like being seen like this at work, and since she obviously wasn’t thinking clearly right now, it was up to him. He couldn’t keep her safe then, but he could keep her safe now. 

“B-but, I’m still working,” Tohru protested weakly. 

“I don’t care,” Kyo responded plainly. He stood, dragging Tohru up with him. “We’re going home.” 

As Kyo led her out of the building, Tohru was still sobbing so hard that her shoulders quaked and her knees shook. Kyo wondered if she could even manage to walk home right now. She was small enough for him to carry her there, but he knew that a young man carrying a crying young woman down the street would look odd to anyone milling about. Was there somewhere private nearby, someplace he could take her until she calmed down? Kyo glanced to his left and noticed a narrow alley between Tohru’s work building and whatever business was next door. It wasn’t the nicest of places, but it would have to work.

He laced his strong arm around Tohru’s shoulders and pulled her into the passageway. She immediately sank down against the wall of her work building and pulled her knees to her chest. Her breathing was ragged, uneven. She was panting, as if she couldn’t suck in enough air to sustain her life. 

“Hey,” Kyo murmured, crouching in front of Tohru. He reached out and smoothed down her hair again, unsure of what else he could really do. She was clearly having some sort of panic attack, and the amount of terror she was bearing on those small shoulders was way out of his realm of expertise. 

By the time Tohru’s breathing had evened out a bit, Kyo had an extensive list of questions thought out. He needed answers, and he didn’t know how much longer he could wait. For the last little bit--he couldn’t pinpoint quite how long--he had watched this girl that he loved, and who he thought loved him back, suffer silently. He could tell something was wrong. Everyone else could, too, no matter how hard Tohru tried to hide it. Kyo felt his hand shake slightly at this thought. Why? Why had she trudged through this alone, when he could have helped carry the burden? 

Tohru felt Kyo’s hand tremble on her head, and looked up, focusing her eyes on his. Her vision was blurry with leftover tears, but she could clearly see that he was in pain. He was in pain, and it was because of her. If she hadn’t cried herself dry, more sobs would have emerged.

Kyo took a deep breath and checked the first question off his list. 

“When did this happen?” 

Tohru sniffled and shifted her weight around awkwardly before answering, her voice tiny. “About a month ago.” 

Kyo nodded slightly to himself. A month. She had carried this with her everywhere--to school, to work, around the house--for a month without telling anyone who loved her.

“Who?” he asked next. He couldn’t help the crack in his voice.  
“I-I...I don’t know his name.” 

“Did you tell the police? Please tell me you told the police.” 

Tohru shook her head timidly, covering her face with her pale hands. 

“Tohru…” Kyo mumbled, his throat suddenly feeling unusually dry, his head spinning. “You were raped. You didn’t tell the police?” 

“No,” she whimpered, sounding on the verge of fresh tears. 

“Okay, okay,” Kyo whispered, mentally cursing himself for making her upset again. He sat next to Tohru and pulled her into his chest. Her face rested against his shoulder, and they just sat quietly for a minute. 

“I saw a doctor,” Tohru said finally. “Maybe she told the police. I don’t know.” 

Kyo sighed, rather relieved that she had at least thought to seek out medical care. 

“Are you healthy?” he asked. Dozens of possible complications swirled around in his mind, but Tohru quelled his fears. 

“Yeah,” she said, voice a little stronger. “I’m not pregnant. No STDs. She said I’m okay.” 

“But you’re not,” Kyo whispered after a moment, tears finally sliding down his own cheeks. “We’ve all seen it, Tohru. We’re not blind. You’ve been miserable.” 

Tohru ground her teeth, desperately trying to keep herself from crying along with Kyo. He was right, and she knew it. She  _ had _ been miserable. She had been haunted by nightmares, suffered through daily anxiety attacks, shut out everyone important to her. Could this damage be repaired? She wasn’t so sure. 

“I want to be here for you,” Kyo continued, filling the silence that he had originally left open for Tohru to speak. His fingers dug into her shoulder slightly as he pulled her as close as he physically could. “I know...we haven’t made a commitment or anythin’ like that...but I love you. You know it. I’m here for you.” 

Tohru remained silent, and Kyo found himself rambling a bit. It wasn’t exactly like him to be that emotional with his words, and her lack of response left him feeling like it had been a mistake.

“This isn’t your fault. You didn’t deserve this. I could never be mad at you for something like this…” 

The next thing he knew, Tohru had pressed her lips against his, her hands holding his cheeks gently. When she pulled back, she said softly, voice no more than a whimper, “Thank you. And I love you.” 

Kyo nodded slightly, taking one of her hands off of his face and squeezing it in his own. He wasn’t sure if she felt it too, but he sensed that an invisible barrier had been broken in that moment. They had been passing each other by before this, stealing quick kisses here and there, holding hands occasionally. They both knew there was more emotion there than that. But neither of them had said anything until now. Kyo closed his eyes and leaned his forehead against Tohru’s.

_ Now that it’s out there in the open,  _ he thought,  _ maybe her healing can start.  _


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the comments and kudos! I'm not sure how many chapters this story will have. I currently have 6 written and am definitely still going, so I hope you'll all stick with me! <3
> 
> TRIGGER WARNING: a bit more graphic than the previous chapters, but still not too graphic, in my opinion.

" _No…"_

_His hands slid down her sides and under the hem of her shirt, revealing the pale skin on her stomach._

_As innocent as Tohru appeared outwardly, she still knew things about this kind of stuff. She knew, for example, that when Kyo put his hands on her hips, a fire burned through her body, and she always felt as if she might choke on the sheer amount of love she felt._

_She knew that this wasn't like that, and that this wasn't how it was supposed to be._

" _Please, no…"_

_He started to slide her skirt down her hips, and she reached her hand out to claw at him. He grabbed it easily and pinned both her hands to the ground with one of his, continuing his original venture with the other._

" _No...p-please stop...stop it!"_

_Suddenly, she was engulfed by warmth. She looked around desperately, trying to find the source…_

"Tohru…"

Her eyelids flew open, and she found herself lying in her bed, wrapped up in Kyo's arms.

"K-Kyo?" She blinked several times, bringing the room into focus. Kyo's head was on her chest as he held her in the dark room, his mess of orange hair tickling her nose a bit. He was straddling her, arms around her small frame, pulling her as close as he could.

"What are you…?" Tohru asked after a moment.

"It sounded like you were having a nightmare. So I came to wake you up."

Tohru felt something wet slide down her cheeks. When had she started crying? As she sat there in Kyo's arms, crying, something came over her. Flashbacks of the nightmare played relentlessly behind her eyes, as if her own mind had turned against her and was resorting to torture. But he was here. He was here and he was holding her as she cried. After she had suffered silently through nightmares for a month, he was here to still her mind at last. It was an indescribable feeling, equal parts pleasure and pain, beauty and darkness. It was both the most wonderful feeling she had ever experienced, and the most awful.

"W-was it about…?" Kyo started to ask, but his voice trailed off into nothingness. Tohru understood, and she nodded. She picked her arms up and tangled her hands in the mop of hair resting on her bosom, trying to pull the boy even closer. She would have fused their bodies together, if possible. Feeling the urgency in her touch, Kyo picked his head up to look at her. Her beautiful brown eyes were still clouded by sleepiness, fear, and sadness. He leaned forward and planted three kisses on her face-one on her forehead, one on her nose, and one on her lips-before using his thumb to smear away her tears.

"I'm so sorry," Kyo whispered, his voice hoarse. He couldn't stand to see her in pain, but he also felt an incredibly powerful urge to remain strong for her, at least outwardly. However badly this affected him, it affected her at least 100 times worse, he knew.

"It's not your fault," Tohru murmured back. "It's not your fault."

Kyo felt his lower lip tremble for a moment, but he managed to keep his tears from falling. Here she was, a mess, a miserable shell of who she once had been, and she was still trying to comfort him.

_Useless_ , Kyo thought to himself. The word repeated, swirling around his mind until it no longer felt like a real word at all. _I'm so useless._

"Will you stay with me?" Tohru asked, her tears finally slowing.

Kyo's cheeks briefly heated up at the idea of anyone finding out he had spent the night in Tohru's room, but he quickly pushed down the odd emotion and nodded his head. He got off of her and laid down next to her, stretching his arm out and pulling her backward so that her head rested against his shoulder.

"Wait, Kyo…" Tohru mumbled. Even in the dim light shining in through the window, he could see that her cheeks were just as red as his had been moments ago.

"Yeah?" Kyo panicked briefly, wondering what he had done wrong. Was cuddling too much for her right now? Was he not supposed to get in her bed, just sit somewhere else in the room?

"Will you switch sides with me?" she asked softly.

Kyo's panic was replaced with confusion, but he just nodded and sat up, shifting his body over Tohru's so that he was on the other side of her. "Yeah, 'course."

Tohru snuggled up to him, her back to the wall behind the bed. Kyo blinked at her and glanced behind his own back as he started to connect the dots in his mind. He was now on the side of the bed closer to Tohru's bedroom door.

"No one's comin' in here, Tohru," he whispered, tangling a hand in her chocolate hair and stroking it affectionately. "Just you and me."

Tohru nodded slightly, eyes again heavy with sleep. She drifted off incredibly quickly, considering the dream she had just had. Kyo liked to think that his presence was comforting, so it thickened his confidence a bit. He quickly realized, though, that he was not going to get any more sleep tonight. He was going to sit there and watch the beautiful girl next to him sleep, and make sure that nothing scared her or woke her up. And, oddly enough, even though he had told Tohru that no one would come through the door, the truth of the matter was that he wasn't sure. The logical side of his mind told him that the front door was locked, and no one else could get into the house, much less into Tohru's room. But the emotional, still-frightened side of his mind told him that it was entirely possible someone could come into the room and hurt Tohru. After all, what were the odds of her getting raped on her way home from the bank after work one day? Small, probably close to none. Yet, it had still transpired.

Yeah...he would stay up the rest of the night to keep her safe. And he was okay with that.

When Tohru's alarm clock went off around 6:30, her eyes flew open once again, the sudden noise startling her. Kyo was already sitting up next to her, rubbing his eyes. He shook his head slightly, trying to stay awake, and leaned over to the bedside table to hit the snooze button on the alarm clock.

"Kyo-kun…" Tohru started. She paused to yawn, covering her mouth, then continued. "Didn't you get any more sleep?"

"Yeah, for a while," he lied, forcing a smile.

Tohru smiled back gently. Her eyes fell from his, and she stared down at the bedspread, at the empty space between them. She was briefly caught between embarrassment at the fact that a boy had spent the night in her bed with her, and the desire to find that comforting warmth again.

Desire won. She leaned over and pressed her lips into Kyo's. Through the kiss, he felt Tohru exhibiting the same urgency he had noticed last night. He complied and kissed her back, but he couldn't help but wonder what was making her cling to him so desperately as they sat there together. She had just looked embarrassed a moment ago, and now she seemed almost flustered, like if she didn't kiss Kyo hard enough, he'd disappear. What was driving this behavior?

Kyo had never really been able to figure out what was going on in his own mind, let alone anyone else's mind, and this moment was no different. He tried to clear his mind. He wanted to enjoy kissing her, he really did...but he also felt uneasy about the whole situation.

He pulled back for air, but Tohru followed him, trying to capture his lips in hers again.

"H-hey, hey…" Kyo mumbled, putting a hand on the side of her face to stop her. "What's going on?"

"Hm? Nothing," Tohru replied, looking up into his eyes. He melted under her gaze slightly and almost gave in to the urge to kiss her again, but restrained himself. Finding out what was going on in her head was more important at the moment.

"Ya know...I'm not going anywhere."

"Wh-what?" Tohru asked, confused. Confused not just at Kyo's words, but also at the feeling that was weighing down her heart. She had never felt this desperate for physical contact before, not with anyone. She didn't understand. All she knew was that she needed Kyo now, and she didn't want to let go.

Kyo slid his hand over to the front of her face and gently traced his thumb over Tohru's lower lip. "I mean, don't get me wrong, I like kissing you...but I want you to know that I'm not leaving. You don't have to hold on so tight."

Tohru nodded slightly and, instead of going in for another kiss, leaned her head against his chest. She could hear Kyo's heartbeat, a steady rhythm. It was fast, maybe a bit faster than normal, but steady and unfaltering. It made an odd feeling of security wash over Tohru. As long as that heartbeat was going, he would be here, and it would all be okay.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for all the kudos and comments, everyone! <3 
> 
> I run a Fruits Basket Tumblr, Twitter, and Instagram where I share my own edits, memes, and such. If you're interested, the username is riceballcatfb. 
> 
> Also, I'm brand new to this website and already managed to eff it up, so you should have gotten chapters 3 and 4 at the same time today.
> 
> ***TRIGGER WARNING: MENTIONS OF RAPE AND PANIC ATTACKS***

About an hour later, Kyo was standing at the stove, stirring some eggs around in a pan, attempting to scramble them. Yuki watched curiously from the doorway for a moment, then cleared his throat to get the orange-haired boy's attention. Kyo glanced over his shoulder briefly before turning back to the eggs.

"Hey," Kyo mumbled.

"Morning," Yuki mumbled back, tone equally as displeased as Kyo's had been. "Where's Miss Honda?"

"Tohru's in bed still. So I'm making breakfast today."

"What was going on with her last night?"

"Huh?" Kyo narrowed his eyes slightly, turning to look at Yuki head-on now.

"I heard her scream. When I went to her door to check on her, I could hear that you were in there, too. Did you...do anything to hurt her?"

Kyo scoffed and dumped the now-finished eggs onto a plate. "'Course not. She had a bad dream."

Yuki wasn't sure he could remember Tohru ever screaming in her sleep before, and frankly, it was easier for him to believe that the stupid cat had done something to her it was to believe that someone so cheerful had had a nightmare that bad.

After a moment of consideration, Yuki admitted, "She's seemed sad recently. Do you know what that's about?"

Yuki cocked his head to the side, confused, as Kyo's whole body tensed at that question. Kyo grabbed the plate of eggs and pushed past his cousin. "Come on, aren't ya gonna eat?"

It wasn't his story to tell, Kyo knew that. If Tohru wanted to tell Yuki, she would. As much as he hated to admit it, she really did need to tell that damn rat...but he wasn't sure she was ready. And it wasn't his place to decide if she was or not.

As he and Yuki sat at the table, each awkwardly shoving their food around with their forks, Kyo could feel the rat's eyes boring into him. For a moment, he hoped Tohru would hurry up and get ready to tell Yuki-he wasn't sure how long he could live with constant pressure from his cousin without resorting back to old ways and snapping.

The boys both turned at the sound of soft footsteps padding down the stairs. Kyo sprang up from his seat on the floor and quickly went to greet the girl.

"Tohru," he said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. She jumped slightly at the suddenness of Kyo's movements, and he pulled his hand back, guilt written across his features.

Yuki watched this unfold from his spot at the table. Kyo shot him a glare, and to his surprise (but certainly not disappointment), Yuki actually looked away from the couple.

"Good morning, Miss Honda," he said, his usual cheery tone back.

"G-good morning, Yuki," Tohru replied, mustering a smile.

"Come eat," Kyo said gently, nudging the girl's shoulder.

The three sat at the table awkwardly, occasionally taking a bite of egg, but mostly just sitting in silence. After a bit, Yuki excused himself and retreated to the kitchen to wash his dish, figuring it best to give Tohru a little more space; when you're not feeling your best, having people staring certainly can't help.

Kyo took Tohru's hand under the table and smiled gently at her when she looked his way. "Want to go for a walk? Some fresh air'll be nice."

"Um, sure. I need to get groceries for dinner tonight."

"We can stop at the store. C'mon." The boy stood, pulling Tohru up with him.

As they walked down the wooded path to the main road, Kyo watched Tohru out of the corner of his eye. She seemed to be in somewhat better spirits. She was rambling off a list of ingredients for tonight's dinner, as if trying to imprint the list into memory-although she and Kyo both knew something would be forgotten by the time they got to the store.

"Did you get some more sleep after I got up?" Kyo asked once Tohru had fallen quiet.

"Eh? O-oh, a little," Tohru responded, pulling at the hem of her skirt awkwardly. Kyo couldn't tell if he was supposed to believe her words or not, but he didn't push the issue. She had slept fine all night in his arms, so he figured he could just go sleep with her again tonight if she needed him to. The thought brought a hint of pink to his face, but he swallowed hard to push away the odd embarrassment. He knew he needed to snap out of it already and realize that there was nothing creepy about sleeping in the same bed as Tohru.

The main road was crowded with people, likely out getting their shopping done this Saturday afternoon, as well. Kyo reached over and gripped Tohru's hand in his as they worked their way through to the store. Once they were safely inside, he tried to release her hand, but Tohru just squeezed, interlocking their fingers.

"Please don't let go," she said softly, cheeks red, gaze down on the tile floor.

Kyo smiled slightly and squeezed Tohru's hand in return. "I won't let go unless you say it's alright."

Grocery shopping with only two free hands among them proved a bit difficult, but they managed to get through the store. As they stood in line to pay, Kyo watched as Tohru tapped each item in the cart, going over her mental shopping list again to make sure that she hadn't forgotten anything. There was something almost obsessive about her actions. In the past, Tohru would have just written down a list and brought a pen along to check things off as she went. Kyo knew this because he had been shopping with her before. But today, she stood there, fingers brushing across each box. How many times had she gone over the list now? Two, three?

"I think we got everythin', Tohru," Kyo said gently. She had finally let go of his hand to count the items, but now Kyo picked her hand up again in an attempt to calm her down."If not, I can always come back later."

Tohru nodded slightly, pinching her lower lip between her teeth. If she were being totally honest, she wasn't sure what she was doing, either, or why she was doing it. All she knew was that it was easy to stop once Kyo took her hand. He was the best distraction.

"We might have overdone it a little bit," Tohru said as they stood outside the store, divvying up the bags for the walk home.

Kyo chuckled and looked at what Tohru was holding, making sure he had the heavier of the bags. "Maybe, but we'll be good for a few days now. Can I help you cook dinner?"

Tohru waved her hands awkwardly. "N-no, you already made breakfast! I'll be fine."

She watched as Kyo drew his lips together. She didn't like that she was being such a burden on him. She could tell that he was uncomfortable, and that he was worrying about her constantly. Tohru knew that his worry was justified, and that she had been less than "fine" lately, but it still hurt to have to rely on him so much. And it had only been a few days since he'd found out. How long would this have to go on?

Kyo groaned to himself as they made it back onto the pathway. "Where do all these people think they're goin'?" he asked. Tohru stayed silent, knowing this to be a rhetorical question, as she trailed behind the orange-haired boy.

"Don't lose me, okay?" Kyo added.

"Right."

Tohru focused on walking, keeping her eyes on Kyo's brightly-colored Converse sneakers to make sure they didn't get separated. Something bumped against her shoulder, and she looked up. A man in a gray suit had run into her.

"Terribly sorry," he said, nodding at her, a smirk playing at his lips.

And in that moment, Tohru's world froze. She felt the grocery bags slip out of her hands as her mind shut out the outside world completely. All she could think was, Oh no, the eggs are probably broken now. That was really the least of her concerns, though, she knew. Tohru felt her chest tighten, and soon she was on her knees on the pavement, the scattered groceries next to her.

Kyo glanced over his shoulder to check on Tohru, and immediately felt an intense panic rise to his chest. Where had she gone?

"Tohru?!" he called, turning around and pushing his way through the groups of people, feeling very much like a salmon going upstream as people bumped him, telling him to watch where he was going.

A few meters back, he found Tohru. She was on her knees on the sidewalk, her gaze down, her head in her hands. People stumbled trying to get around her. Kyo dropped to his knee next to her and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Hey," he said gently, "What's going on?"

"H-he…" Tohru stammered before her voice trailed off.

"Who?"

"Th-the guy...he…"

Kyo narrowed his eyes, his mind trying to process Tohru's broken words. It all clicked a moment later. He had seen the guy run into Tohru, smile at her, and nod at her. Kyo had thought nothing of it and kept walking, figuring he still had Tohru in tow. Had that been…?

"Was that…?" Kyo breathed, not really expecting Tohru to answer. But he knew he was right, just based on the way Tohru was trembling under his touch.

Kyo had been angry many times before, but nothing compared to the sheer rage he felt burning his entire being. He stood quickly and took Tohru's arm as gently as his flustered mind would allow. He pulled her up with him and guided her over to a nearby bench.

"Stay here," he ordered, and he took off.

He knew he should have stayed with Tohru to calm her down. But all he could truly focus on was finding that guy and beating the shit out of him.

Kyo had no idea where the man had gone, and he could have been anywhere by now. But Kyo was rather tall, and he could see over the crowd somewhat easily. After a minute, he identified a gray suit jacket, and pushed through the clusters of people more quickly, trying to catch up.

"You bastard…" he mumbled, ignoring the frustrated cries of those he was shoving past.

"Hey, you!" he screamed as he got closer. "Get back here!"


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ***TRIGGER WARNING: mentions of rape, nothing graphic***
> 
> Thank you for the kudos and comments. Enjoy! <3 
> 
> Furuba socials--  
> Tumblr, Twitter, and Instagram: @riceballcatfb

In the 30 seconds it took Kyo to catch up with the man in the gray suit, a million different scenarios had run through his mind, all ending with the bastard lying on the ground, soaked in his own blood. But once Kyo caught him by the sleeve, pulling him around to see his face, every ounce of fighting will left his body.

Outwardly, the guy looked pretty normal. He was clearly an office worker, in a nice suit and tie. His shoes were polished and gleaming. He had dark hair and eyes, looking very traditionally Japanese. But Kyo knew that this man was anything but normal. This was the man that had violated Tohru, shattering who she once was.

"Can I help you?" the man asked, yanking his sleeve out of Kyo's hand.

For a moment, Kyo couldn't find his voice. _Snap out of it_ , he told himself, and opened his mouth. Words trickled out. They weren't what he had intended to say, but it was better than nothing.

"That girl back there...the one you bumped into...do you know her?"

The man tilted his head to the side, as if trying to remember. "The girl in the blue top? No, I don't. It's just so crowded that I ran into her." He smiled pleasantly and looked at his watch.

"But...the way you looked at her," Kyo choked out.

The man shook his head, becoming increasingly frustrated with the stammering boy. "Did you really chase me down in this crowd to ask me this? If you'll excuse me, I need to get back to work."

As the guy turned to leave, Kyo was snapped back to attention. He grabbed the man's sleeve again, tugging even harder this time.

Through gritted teeth, Kyo spat, "You bastard. We both know what you did."

The man's face darkened at those words. "What exactly are you implying I did to that young woman?"

"Y-you…" Kyo choked out, feeling faint again. "You raped her." He hadn't said the words out loud until then. It was if hearing them come out of his own mouth cemented the fact that the event had indeed transpired. Tohru had been raped. And he hadn't been there to protect her, like he promised her mother he would long, long ago.

"Do you have any evidence? Or do you just walk around accusing everyone of rape?"

Kyo didn't answer. He could feel the Earth start to spin faster around him, and for a moment, he had to focus on nothing but keeping himself from passing out.

"What, is she your girlfriend?" the man prompted.

"So what if she is?" Kyo asked, finally regaining his breath.

The man simply clucked his tongue at Kyo.

"You're gonna pay for this," Kyo insisted. "She's a mess. And it's all because of you."

"What a shame that you have no proof," the man said, his distaste for the whole situation very apparent by now.

"I'll call the police." Kyo was growing desperate, and he knew it was showing. What were the odds he would ever see this man again? The odds of crossing paths with him today were slim as it was. This would be his last chance to do something. But as hard as he tried, he couldn't even form more words, let alone a fist to take out his anger on the bastard in front of him.

"You don't even know my name." The man turned, once again freeing himself from Kyo's grip. "Tell her I said hello, though, will you? And I hope she feels better soon."

As the man walked away, Kyo felt his legs tremble. He dropped to his knees, and was soon sitting in the same position that Tohru had been in minutes before. What had just happened? Kyo felt his throat tighten up, and his vision blurred with a sudden onslaught of tears. He coughed a couple of times to cover a sob, and shakily pulled himself to his feet. Kyo made his way over to a nearby building and leaned his back against it. He needed to go get Tohru. He knew she had to be panicking by now, but if he went over to her a mess, himself, it would only make things worse. He had to pull himself together first.

Kyo covered his eyes with his forearm, taking deep breaths in through his nose and exhaling through his mouth. Once his breathing had steadied more, he dealt with his tears, rubbing at his orange eyes with the heels of his palms.

Kyo made his way back to the bench he had left Tohru on. He still felt faint, like he was living in a dream. An awful, horrible dream. He didn't know what he was going to tell Tohru when he got to her. He used the few seconds he had left to draw a shaky plan together.

Tohru was sitting on the bench, her head in her hands. Tears were dripping from her eyes, sliding across her hands and down her arms before scattering on the ground. A few people nearby were looking at her and whispering, likely contemplating whether or not they should try to console her. When they saw Kyo kneel in front of Tohru, though, they awkwardly moved along.

Kyo silently leaned his forehead against Tohru's as she cried. It took everything in him to not cry along with her. Reminding himself to be strong, he tried to give her the line he had practiced on the way over. Once again, his voice failed to comply with his brain's request, and what he vocalized was not what he had planned.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, nearly choking on the words.

Tohru wiped at her eyes and looked up at Kyo. She took in the sight of him silently, going over his body from head to toe. Her gaze lingered on his hands, noting that his knuckles were not swollen or bloody. That's what had worried her most-that he would run after the man and get himself into trouble with his hot temper. As she had sat on the bench alone, that was mostly what she thought about; not the fact that she was terrified, traumatized, and broken, but that she didn't want Kyo to get hurt.

"Wh-what did you…?" she breathed, sniffling slightly. Kyo tucked his hand into the sleeve of his jacket and used it to gently wipe at Tohru's nose and eyes.

In response to her half-spoken question, he simply shook his head.

Tohru slid off the bench then, intentionally falling straight into Kyo's arms. So much public affection would normally send her into a state of embarrassment, she knew, but she didn't care right now. She just wanted to be held. And Kyo complied, thinking that was probably the most he could do for her at the moment.

* * *

"Well that was certainly a long trip to the store."

Kyo looked up from his feet wearily, his eyes meeting Shigure's. He stood in the doorway, watching the two teenagers come up the steps.

"You two look awful. Did something happen?"

Kyo waved his older cousin off and turned around, offering Tohru his hand to get her the rest of the way up the front steps.

"You should go get some rest," Kyo insisted, voice still hoarse. Tohru nodded and slipped her shoes off, carrying them into the house. "I'll be there in a minute," Kyo added, watching her back as she walked off shakily to her room.

"Kyo…" Shigure said. His tone was more serious than Kyo had ever heard before. "What happened?"

Kyo felt his shoulders shake, and he cursed under his breath, berating himself for being so weak, especially in front of Shigure. He sank to the ground, sitting on his heels, and wrapped his arms around himself tightly, as if trying to transform into an egg where he could hide from the world.

"I can't tell you," he said, head lowered.

"Why not?"

Footsteps approached. Kyo didn't need to look up to know whose they were.

Kyo looked so bad that Yuki couldn't even bring himself to tease him; the gray-haired boy just looked back and forth between Kyo and Shigure.

"Kyo, Tohru is living in my house, and I'm responsible for her. If something happened, I need you to tell me."

"I can't. She needs to."

Shigure sighed and patted Yuki on the shoulder awkwardly. "Then, let's go ask Tohru ourselves."

As Shigure made his way back in the house, Yuki bent down and grabbed Kyo's arm, yanking him to his feet. Kyo looked at him blankly, waiting for the rat to yell at him. But Yuki just stared at him for a moment before muttering, "Come on," and pulling Kyo towards the stairs inside.

At the top of the stairs, they met Shigure. The three men made eye contact. Yuki nodded, and Shigure tapped lightly on Tohru's door. "Tohru? Can we talk to you?"


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for the kudos and comments. I hope you guys are still enjoying this <3 
> 
> Furuba socials: @riceballcatfb on Tumblr, Instagram, and Twitter
> 
> ***TRIGGER WARNING: BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF RAPE***

When the three men entered Tohru's room, Shigure sat on the edge of Tohru's bed while Yuki and Kyo hung back by the door. The silence in the room was tense as the four people exchanged awkward glances. Even Shigure, who always bragged about his way with words, seemed unsure about how to begin the conversation. Lucky for all three Sohmas, Tohru started things off herself by bursting into tears.

"I'm sorry I didn't say anything before," she sobbed, covering her face with her hands. "But I...I was raped."

While the silence had been heavy before, it was nearly unbearable now. Shigure and Yuki were openly shocked, jaws slack, while Kyo stared at the floor and leaned against the doorframe with his arms crossed. He desperately wanted to run over and comfort Tohru, but a nagging feeling of doubt stopped him from doing so. He wasn't sure what was best for her anymore. Maybe she needed to just feel these emotions without his sadness also weighing down on her.

Shigure took in a deep breath and asked softly, "When did this happen?" Kyo had never heard such a gentle tone from that stupid dog, but he was grateful to him for pulling it out now.

Tohru sniffled and reached to her bedside table to grab a box of tissues before speaking again. "A month ago, about. I went to the bank after work to deposit a check. He...this man asked for directions to the train station. I offered to take him there, and while we were walking, he pulled me into an alley and just…" Her words were breathy and interrupted by sobs here and there, but she had managed to get it all out. If she had been in her right mind at the moment, Tohru would have been proud of herself for that. Instead, she was filled with anguish and more than a little shame at the situation. But Kyo, still avoiding looking at her, was silently proud in her stead, though she was unaware.

"Those bruises…" Yuki murmured, apparently deep in thought. "Last month...when you had bruises on your legs. I asked you about them…" He trailed off there, but the rest of his question was obvious to everyone present: _Why didn't you tell me the truth about how you got them_?

"I'm sorry, Yuki, Shigure." Tohru breathed in sharply and Kyo finally snapped his head up, afraid she was on the verge of another panic attack. But she got her breathing under control rather quickly, and Kyo sighed with relief.

"Tohru," Shigure said, rubbing her shoulder affectionately. "You can tell us anything. We just want to help."

Tohru knew that. She really did. But she couldn't quite put into words the reason she had been silent for so long. After all, even Kyo hadn't known for long. Uo-chan and Hana-chan still didn't know, though they'd been asking about the odd mood Tohru had been in lately. So instead of speaking, she just nodded.

"Why has today been so hard for you?" Shigure prompted.

Tohru just sobbed in response.

"We saw him," Kyo said, taking over for her. "The guy...he walked right past us."

Yuki and Shigure turned to him in almost perfect unison. Shigure's eyes showed genuine surprise, whereas Yuki's eyes were narrowed in an accusatory glare. Kyo ignored both of them and looked down at the carpet again.

Shigure sighed and stood up from his spot on Tohru's bed. "We can talk more later. You should try to get some rest."

Tohru nodded and rubbed at her eyes. After placing a soft kiss on the top of her head, Yuki shoved past Kyo and out of the room, trailing behind Shigure.

"I'll be back, 'kay?" Kyo mumbled, still not able to make eye contact with the girl

"Okay…" she whispered. Kyo closed the door on his way out. Yuki was waiting a few feet away, arms crossed. Kyo just sighed and motioned for Yuki to follow him down the stairs. A few minutes later, the three men were congregated in the living room.

"You've done a lot of moronic things in your life, but this is low, even for _you._ You just let him walk away?" Yuki hissed at Kyo.

Kyo was sitting cross-legged in front of the table, his head lying on the wood so he could avoid having to look at Yuki and Shigure. Shigure made a shushing motion at Yuki. "Volume down. We don't want to upset Tohru any more than she already is."

Kyo choked out a canned line he had planned on the way back to the house. "There were a ton of people around. If I had beaten the guy's ass and gotten arrested, that wouldn't do Tohru any good."

It was true. Kyo, Shigure, and Yuki all knew that. But Kyo still couldn't shake the feeling of inferiority that was pressing on his chest, threatening to suffocate him. After all the martial arts training he'd gone through, he still couldn't do anything. No matter how much he loved Tohru and wanted to protect her. He had frozen.

Kyo resisted the urge to curl up into a ball on the floor and instead forced himself to look up at his cousins. They both stared at him quietly for a moment before Shigure spoke up. "You have a point. Clearly you're the only one Tohru really wants to confide in. You have to be here for her." Yuki leaned back against the wall, giving a brief nod as a sign of agreement.

"But we can't just let her suffer like this," Yuki added after a moment. "Look at her. She's feeling awful!"

"Isn't that to be expected?" Kyo mumbled under his breath. Yuki opened his mouth to retort, but once again, Shigure silenced him.

"Regardless, Kyo, I'm surprised you've managed to carry this burden alone until now. With how much you love Tohru, you must be suffering as greatly as she is, just in a different way."

Kyo could feel himself shrinking under the pressure of Shigure and Yuki's stares. "She needed to tell you herself," he replied finally, shrugging slightly.

Yuki rolled his eyes at Kyo's nonchalant attitude, but knowing it was all a brave front, stayed quiet about it.

"We need to know what we can do to help Miss Honda," he said instead.

Shigure nodded. "She said she's seen a doctor, yes? What about a therapist?" He looked at Kyo expectantly.

Kyo shook his head.

"That might be a good starting point, then. Shall I call Hatori to get some information from him?"

Kyo's eyes widened. "No, don't. Not without her permission."

"If we waited for her to give us permission for anything, she'd never be taken care of," Yuki commented. "She doesn't like to bother anyone else. She didn't even tell you about this until a few days ago."

Kyo was reluctant to agree, but he knew it was the truth. No matter how badly he wanted to keep Tohru safe all by himself, clearly his current tactic wasn't effective. Sitting patiently, holding onto her almost desperately while she battled the demons in her head just wasn't working. When Tohru had told Kyo what had happened-well, or was forced to-he had thought that maybe she would begin healing. But as much as he hated to admit it, he was only one person, and was very ill-equipped to handle something like this. Maybe, the more support, the better.

"Fine," Kyo said after a second of thought. Yuki nodded at Shigure, and the eldest of the three cousins padded off down the hallway towards the phone.

Kyo and Yuki were left alone in the living room. Kyo set his head down on the table again with a thump. Yuki rolled his eyes at the sound and approached Kyo, nudging him with his foot. It was too soft to be a kick, but just hard enough to make Kyo uncurl his body and look up.

"What?" Kyo grumbled. He was feeling miserable enough on his own-he didn't need Yuki to beat up on him right now and make things worse.

"I believe you love her. I believe you care about her well-being and want what's best for her. Don't prove me wrong." With his words hanging in the air between them, Yuki walked off as well.

Kyo sighed to himself. He did love her, and care about her well-being, and want what's best for her. Maybe he just wasn't able to show it like he should. Shigure's words from when Kyo first moved into this house echoed in his mind.

" _Think of it as training."_

Yes, maybe he wasn't able to show his feelings like he should _right now_. But maybe he could also train himself to be able to take care of Tohru better.

He dragged himself to his feet and wiped at his eyes, making sure they were completely dry before heading up the stairs and tapping on Tohru's door. She didn't answer, so Kyo opened it slowly, thinking maybe she was taking a nap. Instead, she was sitting up, staring out her window at the nearby tree branches waving in the breeze.

"Hey," Kyo said, putting on a soft smile. Tohru flinched at his voice, but forced herself to smile back a bit as she turned to him.

Kyo sat on the edge of her bed and pulled her head into his chest. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine."

Kyo grimaced slightly, knowing he had already messed up; how couldn't he have expected such an obviously fake answer to that insensitive question?

He kissed the top of her head and tried again. "I know you weren't really ready to tell Shigure and that rat yet."

Tohru shrugged and pulled back a bit to meet Kyo's eyes. She could sense the uncertainty behind all his words, and she was confused by it, frankly. Why was he so unsure of himself right now?

"But...now they can try to help ya, too. It won't just be me. It'll be all of us."

Tohru sat quietly, her gaze urging him to continue.

Kyo sucked in a deep breath and kept going. "They care about you too. I want to protect you. You know that. But I need some help."

Tohru drew back more, trying to process Kyo's words. She hated that all three boys knew what had happened. Not only was it a burden on them, but it was also embarrassing for her, to say the least. "Innocent" Tohru had been taken advantage of. "Innocent" Tohru needed rescuing. Again. She had no idea why she couldn't manage to stand on her own two feet, but it was absolutely mortifying. When Mom had died, she swore that she would be able to take care of herself. But here she was, relying on the Sohma family for everything.

She lowered her gaze to her pink bedspread, reaching her hands out blindly until they hit Kyo's torso. She made fists around his shirt and pulled him in with a swift tug. Off balance, Kyo pressed a hand into the mattress to avoid landing directly on her. Tohru lied there quietly, now wrapping her arms around the boy's stomach. She nuzzled her face against his neck, breathing in his scent. Their chests were pressed together, still a rather new sensation, and Tohru could feel his heartbeat pounding. She didn't know what was going to happen next, or what she should feel or do. All she knew was that she loved this boy with all her heart. And he-this boy that had laughed with her, cried with her, and tried his best to defend her for the past few years was here with her, holding her. He loved her back.

"What is it?" Kyo asked quietly, shifting his position so that his knees were on either side of her hips, and his face was level with hers. Tohru met his gaze for a second before squeezing her eyes shut. Kyo ran a finger across her cheek and planted a kiss on her nose.

"Nothing, really," she said. Eyes still closed, she reached up, managing to capture Kyo's cheeks between her hands. Tohru pulled gently, lowering his face until their lips met. When they pulled back, Kyo just looked at her, waiting for her to say something else. Up until now, Kyo had initiated most kisses. Tohru had asked for physical touch in other ways, like tugging him down on top of her just now, but kissing still seemed rather foreign and uncomfortable to her, and was something she had asked for only a handful of times.

"I just love you very, very much," she whispered.

Kyo couldn't help the goofy grin that spread across his face. He lowered his head to hide his hot cheeks, kissing her neck a couple of times before whispering back, "I love you, too. So much."

Tohru smiled as Kyo picked his head up to look at her again. "I don't mind that Yuki and Shigure know," she said hesitantly. Kyo looked skeptical, and she wasn't sure she even believed that herself, but she knew she had to stick with it now. "It makes me happy that you all care about me and want to help me. It really does."

"Good," Kyo said, leaning forward to kiss her again. As he pulled away, his hair tickled her nose, and Tohru smirked again. "'Cause they called Hatori to ask him for a therapist's phone number."

Tohru sighed a bit and closed her eyes once more.

After sitting quietly for a minute, Kyo asked gently, "Tohru?"

"It's okay," she said. "I'll talk to the therapist if that's what you want."

Kyo frowned. That was so like her. She'd visit a therapist if that was what _he_ wanted, not because she was admitting there was a need for her to. But it was better than nothing.

Tohru continued before Kyo could think of a good reply. "Just hold me for a bit...okay?"

Kyo nodded and put his hand under Tohru's head, pulling her as close to him as possible.

"Forever, if that's what you want," he mumbled, burying his face against her shoulder.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter isn't exactly action-packed, but important nonetheless. Thank you for all your kind words. I hope you continue to enjoy the story. <3

_Tick. Tock._

Tohru's brown eyes flitted back and forth in time with the chime in the grandfather clock she was staring at. She had been here for 20 minutes already, and the therapist was still "getting paperwork in order." Tohru would glance over at her every once in a while, but mostly stayed quiet and watched the clock tick.

_Tick. Tock._

"Alright, Tohru."

Tohru flinched at the sudden voice, but turned her head to the therapist and smiled politely. "Yes?"

"My name is Maiko. I'm the psychologist that will be working with you today." Maiko leaned forward and placed a notebook on her desk. Tohru watched as she flipped through the booklet until she finally got to a blank page, upon which she scrawled Tohru's name in quick, messy letters.

"So, what brings you here today?" Maiko asked, tucking some of her black hair behind her ear. She was all angles-thin, tall, a defined chin and nose. Even her hair was cut in a perfect line just above her shoulders. It made her a little intimidating, but Tohru tried to push past her hesitation and give Maiko a fair chance.

"I, uh...I was raped," Tohru responded softly, playing with the hem of her skirt. Maiko seemed to notice this, and she made a simple checkmark in her notebook. Tohru had been nervous already, and seeing Maiko seemingly write in code was definitely not helping.

"I'm sorry that happened to you."

"It's okay."

"Why do you say that?" Maiko asked, tilting her head to the side slightly.

Tohru was completely taken aback. Why _did_ she say that? She'd never thought about it. She said it to everyone, every time something bad happened to her. But was it because she really believed it, because she thought everything happened for a reason? Or was it to avoid making the other person uncomfortable?

"I-I…" Tohru stammered for a moment before settling on an answer. "Because I'm alright now. I didn't get hurt."

Maiko's dark eyes moved back down to Tohru's hands, which were now making tight fists around the fabric of her skirt. _Checkmark._

"Physically?"

"I'm sorry?" Tohru asked.

"You didn't get hurt physically, you mean?"

"Oh, r-right…"

"Who is that boy waiting outside for you?"

Surprised by the sudden topic change, Tohru blinked, then opened her mouth to speak, only to shut it again. How could she even introduce Kyo? Was he her boyfriend? If she said that, would he get mad later? What if that wasn't what he wanted? Tohru gritted her teeth. This was definitely _not_ the time to be worrying about something like that.

"That's Kyo-kun," she said, taking the simple approach.

"I'm assuming Kyo knows about what happened to you?"

"Y-yes…"

"How did he find out?"

"He...he noticed that I was acting strangely. So I had to tell him."

"You didn't want to tell him?"

Tohru simply shook her head, watching as yet another mysterious checkmark was written on her page in the notebook. This was already too much. She never should have agreed to come. But she couldn't very well leave now...this was a friend of Hatori's, and she was seeing Tohru for free…

"Were you afraid of how he was going to react?" Maiko asked, stilling Tohru's racing thoughts.

"I was worried," Tohru admitted, looking back over to the grandfather clock, eyes ticking back and forth with the chime again. She heard pen hitting paper and cringed. How many checkmarks were there now?

"And how _did_ Kyo react?"

"He…" Tohru trailed off and squeezed her eyes shut. The memory of that day came back to her almost instantly, half due to will and half unconsciously.

"He held me. And cried with me." Tohru clamped her mouth shut and looked at Maiko again. Kyo would be so mad if he knew Tohru had said he cried…

Tohru was surprised by the look on Maiko's face-this was the first smile she had seen from the therapist. It was faint, barely noticeable, but definitely there.

"So that wasn't how you were expecting him to react, was it?"

"No, it wasn't."

"And what about when you told the other men you live with? Were you expecting them to react poorly?"

"Yes, I guess so…"

"And did they?"

Tohru shook her head. She was truly unsure of what the therapist was trying to accomplish with all these questions, but was doing her best to play along. This lady had gone to school for a long time to get this job, so she must know _something_ about how to make Tohru feel better.

"So no one reacted badly. No one blamed you, or yelled at you."

Tohru nodded in confirmation, becoming more and more lost by the moment.

"Tohru, why did you wait so long to come see a therapist?"

Tohru inhaled rather sharply. _Checkmark._

"Because I was embarrassed," she whispered.

"But if no one else reacted badly, why would a therapist?"

Tohru just shook her head. She felt tears springing to her eyes and tried desperately to dispel them.

"Tohru, do you feel like what happened to you is your fault?"

The room began to spin a bit, and Tohru focused her gaze on the floor to still the imaginary motion, beginning to feel a bit sick. Coming here was such a mistake…

Tohru waited quietly, hoping Maiko would move on, but she didn't. So Tohru finally choked out a frail, "Yes."

Tohru felt the therapist's gaze on her and forced herself to look up.

Once their eyes met, Maiko continued by prompting, "Who put that blame on you? Did someone else tell you it's your fault? Or was it you?"

Too much.

"I-I'm sorry, but...how are you going to help me by asking these things?"

Maiko gave another smile, just as fleeting as the first. "My job is to make you realize that this _isn't_ your fault, Tohru. It'll all make sense soon, I promise. I'll see you next week."

* * *

Kyo and Tohru walked back towards the house quietly. This was an incredibly slow pace for Kyo, but he was letting Tohru take the lead, and she couldn't very well move faster with the way her eyes were glued to the pavement.

"So...did you like her?" Kyo asked awkwardly.

Tohru didn't answer for a moment. Instead, she stopped walking.

"Tohru?"

"I don't know," she said finally.

Kyo cleared his throat, unsure of what to say to that. "Oh...maybe she'll grow on ya." Tohru's eyes hadn't left the sidewalk since they'd departed the therapist's office. What was going on in her mind? Kyo thought that, at that moment, he'd give absolutely anything just to know what that girl was thinking.

"Well, what did she say?" he asked.

"I don't know," Tohru said again. Kyo was becoming more and more confused, and judging by the tone of Tohru's voice, so was she. Who the hell had Hatori sent her to?

"Tohru...are you okay?" Kyo reached down and tilted her chin up so that their eyes could meet.

Tohru nodded hastily and started rambling like she always used to when she felt awkward. "I think so. I mean, yes. It was a weird experience, but I'll be alright. Maybe the next visit will be better..."

Kyo couldn't help but smile a bit. It had been a while since she had jabbered at him like that. The other day, Kyo had been filled with a sense of total despair and helplessness at the idea that Tohru wasn't getting better. He wondered if she would ever go back to her normal self. However, the closer he started to look at Tohru's actions, the more he realized that slowly but steadily, she was picking up some of her old habits again. When they had run into that bastard on the street a while ago, Tohru had worried more about Kyo getting in trouble than the inevitable panic attack she would have about the situation. She had cooked dinner last night, to everyone's delight, as they were really getting tired of the three meals Kyo knew how to make. She had been more open about wanting affection from him. He wasn't sure what exactly was making this happen, but he was grateful all the same.

Kyo leaned toward the girl and planted a chaste kiss on her lips, silencing her babbling. When he pulled back, her cheeks were red and she glanced around, probably wondering if anyone had seen them. The street was empty, but Kyo wouldn't care if anyone _had_ noticed, anyway. "Let's go," he said, squeezing his hand in hers. Tohru smiled up at him and nodded.

"Kyo-kun?" she asked after a minute.

"Hm?"

"Thank you for coming with me. I'm sorry I wasted your day."

Kyo frowned and looked over at her. Noticing the look on his face, Tohru shrank back a bit, confused about what she had done to earn an expression of such displeasure.

"Being with you is never a waste," Kyo said firmly. "I'm here, whatever you need. 'Kay?"

Tohru nodded and lifted their hands, fingers still interlocked, to her lips. She pecked the back of his hand quickly before lowering her arm again and looking ahead, where the house was becoming steadily closer.

When the pair walked into the living room, Yuki and Shigure were sitting at the table quietly. This looked very unnatural to Kyo, almost as if they were waiting for him and Tohru to get back. Tohru didn't seem to notice, and just smiled at the men politely.

"You're back," Shigure said, at the same time Yuki asked, "How did it go, Miss Honda?"

"Oh, it was fine," Tohru said breezily, heading toward the kitchen. "Well, I'd better get started on dinner."

The three Sohmas shared a look as Tohru shut the kitchen door behind her.

"She's cooking again," Shigure noted, tapping his index finger against the table uneasily.

"Yes, but she's acting strangely," Yuki added.

Kyo sighed. Bits of Tohru were coming back, slowly, like the leaves falling from the trees in autumn-one at a time. Even so, she did still have her strange moments. This would be a long road. They would all just have to be patient.

Kyo knew this. He understood, he really did. But that didn't make it any easier.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Furuba social medias: @riceballcatfb on Instagram, Twitter, and Tumblr. 
> 
> I also blog about anime: 
> 
> https://lucyjenson2017.wixsite.com/justnerdythings


	8. Chapter 8

It was time to visit the therapist again. Not "the therapist," _Maiko_ , Tohru corrected herself as she and Kyo approached the office building. Tohru thought that maybe referring to Maiko by her first name would make her seem more approachable. Kyo held the door open for her. Once they were inside, they saw Maiko leaning against the front desk, talking in a hushed tone to her secretary. When the bell attached to the door jingled behind Kyo and Tohru, Maiko looked up.

"Tohru," she said. "I'm ready whenever you are."

Tohru nodded and started to follow after the woman, but Kyo grabbed her arm, halting her.

"Kyo-kun?" she asked.

"Tohru…" Kyo mumbled, leaning down to touch their foreheads together. "I love you. If you get upset and wanna leave, I'm right here."

Tohru's cheeks heated slightly at the sudden display of affection, but she smiled and leaned into Kyo. "I love you too. I'll be okay. Don't worry."

Kyo nodded and stepped back. He pursed his lips and gave a serious nod to Maiko, who had been watching the exchange quietly. She gave him an equally serious look in return, but the corners of her lips were curled into a gentle smirk, making her intention unclear.

As soon as the door to Maiko's office was shut and the two women were seated, Tohru took a deep breath to steady her nerves before blurting, "What do the checkmarks mean?" It might have been a stupid thing to ask, but before Tohru had come to her appointment today, she had made a mental list of things she wanted to say; finding the meaning behind the mysterious checkmarks had gotten the top position on this list.

Maiko looked taken aback for a moment before masking it by looking down at her notebook to find Tohru's page again.

"Did they make you nervous?" she asked.

Tohru swallowed a sigh, a little frustrated that her question was being answered with another question. "A little," she admitted after a moment.

Maiko nodded, looking up at Tohru again. "I was counting the times you displayed an anxious behavior."

"A-anxious...behavior?"

"For example, watching the clock, or making fists, or stammering. This helps me see how anxious you appear-the more marks at the end of the session, the more anxious, of course. It can also help me see what parts of your story make you the most anxious. That way, I know what to work on," Maiko explained.

Tohru was surprised to get such a detailed answer. These few sentences were more than Maiko had said during their last session altogether.

"Oh...how many did I have last time?"

"Five."

"Is that bad?"

"No," Maiko responded simply. "Not bad, and not good."

Tohru had no idea what that could possibly mean.

"Now," Maiko continued, "I would like you to tell me more about the night of your rape."

Tohru inhaled sharply. _Checkmark_. Tohru cringed, making a mental note to try and block out the sound of Maiko writing-it was just going to make her even more anxious.

"O-okay," Tohru agreed hesitantly. "What would you like to know?"

"Why don't we start with a timeline?"

Tohru nodded slightly and trained her gaze on the carpet, trying to recall that night. "About a month and a half ago," she started, "I went to the bank after work. I needed to cash my paycheck. I went in and got my money, and on the way back out, a man stopped me. He asked me where the nearest train station was. I told him I could take him. Looking back on it, that was really dumb…" Tohru let out a self-deprecating chuckle. "He didn't even tell me where he needed to go. I should have at least asked that, so I knew which station to take him to. But anyway, we started walking. He made small talk-asked me if I was in school still, what I planned on doing after graduation, all the normal stuff. I didn't feel uncomfortable at all, really."

Tohru paused to breathe, and Maiko instantly filled the silence with a question. "You had never met this man before?"

Tohru shook her head and hurried to continue with the story before she lost her nerve to do so. "It was dark by then, and I tripped over a crack in the sidewalk. I was about to fall, but he reached out and grabbed my arm to keep me up. I stood back up all the way and thanked him. I was embarrassed that I had been so clumsy in front of a stranger. But...that was the least of my problems right then."

"What happened next?" Maiko prompted gently.

"He...he didn't let go of my arm right away, like he should have. He just held on tighter. He pulled me over into this alley and pushed me down onto the ground. He got on top of me. I thought maybe he just wanted my money, since he'd seen me outside the bank. I told him he could have it, but...that wasn't what he wanted. He started to kiss me. That's when I first got really scared, for some reason. It just...didn't feel right."

"What do you mean by that?"

Tohru shifted uncomfortably. The only way she could think of to explain it would bring Kyo into the equation, which she wasn't thrilled to do. "Well, when Kyo-kun kisses me, it makes me happy. It feels g-good. With this man, it didn't. It didn't feel like that. It wasn't right."

"What did you do then?" Maiko asked.

"I tried to push him off of me. But I'm not exactly strong. He just pinned my hands down on the pavement. He started kissing down my neck, and he took off my shirt, and then my bra." Tohru squeezed her eyes shut, trying to block out the vivid images flooding into her mind, playing like a movie behind her eyes. She forced herself to continue. She was almost done. She could do it.

"And then...his hands went down my skirt. Then, the next thing I knew, it was off and he was...you know…" She exhaled, relieved to have reached the end of the story. The end of the nightmare.

"What happened when he had finished?" Maiko asked.

"He threw my clothes at me and left."

"Did he say anything?"

"He...he called me a whore. I don't know why, though."

"What did you do next?"

"I was feeling kind of numb. I put my clothes on and started to walk home. All I could think about at first was how late I was going to be. I hoped the boys weren't too hungry waiting for me to make dinner."

"When did it really hit you? When did you realize that you had been raped?"

Tohru cringed slightly at the word, and squeezed her hands into tight balls to distract herself. "The next morning. Yuki-kun-he's one of the men I live with-asked me why there were bruises on my thighs."

"What did you tell him?"

"I didn't realize I had bruises. When I looked down at them, I froze. It was like...a physical reminder of what had happened the night before, I guess. I got scared about what Yuki-kun would think, so I told him that I had fallen down the stairs at work."

"Is that when you decided that this whole thing was your fault?"

Tohru nodded, gulping in an attempt to calm her nerves. "It was like...not only had I let that man take advantage of me, but I'd also let him mark my skin. That made it worse somehow. I started thinking that maybe I didn't fight back hard enough. Or, maybe if I had screamed, he would have let me go. And...that I was so stupid for even talking to him at all."

Tears slid down Tohru's cheeks and landed with a slight splatter on her knees. For a moment, she was absolutely mortified by the fact that she was crying so openly in front of a complete stranger. But she couldn't stop the tears. A sob escaped her lips, and she held her head in her trembling hands. Maiko sat quietly for a moment, letting Tohru cry before responding.

"Tohru...let's break this down. What were your intentions when you talked to that man outside the bank?"

"M-my…?" Tohru asked between sobs. After a moment of focus, she was able to calm her breathing enough to give Maiko a proper answer. "My intentions were...to take him to the station."

"And that was nice of you, right?"

"I guess so…"

"So your intentions were good."

Tohru nodded slightly, giving confirmation.

"And what were the man's intentions? Were they good? Were they kind?"

"No," Tohru whispered, voice so weak and quiet that it was almost inaudible.

"You can't control other people's intentions, Tohru," Maiko said gently. "All you can do is make sure that you're a good person. And you are. You're such a good person that you wanted to make sure that a complete stranger got to the train station safely."

"But I got taken advantage of," Tohru sobbed, a fresh wave of tears springing free.

"That has nothing to do with your intentions. It has everything to do with what his intentions were, though."

Tohru just shook her head, not capable of responding verbally anymore.

"In college, I was raped," Maiko continued. "My therapist told me exactly what I'm saying to you. As a society, we know some things about rapists and their patterns of behavior. Even if you had just walked away instead of offering to help him, he likely would have grabbed you anyway."

Tohru felt as if she might fall out of her chair. She would have been perfectly okay with crumbling right then, falling to pieces onto the grey carpet. Then she wouldn't have to talk. She wouldn't have to hear, she wouldn't have to see, she wouldn't have to feel.

"And, as much as we hate to admit it, sometimes others like to take advantage of nice people. But there are even more people who will appreciate your kindness. You've seen that, haven't you?"

Tohru leaned back against the stiff chair she was on, closing her eyes. She _had_ seen that. She could think of only a handful of times that her kindness had truly been used against her in such a large capacity. But she could think of several people who had appreciated her kindness, instead. Kyo-kun, Yuki-kun, Shigure, Momiji, Hatsuharu, Kisa, Rin, Hiro, Uo-chan, Hana-chan, Hatori...even people she hadn't spent much time with, like Ritsu. Even people who had taken some time to warm up to her, like Hiro. All of these people had seen her kindness and returned it with their own.

"Yes," Tohru choked out finally. "You're right." She rubbed at her eyes and looked at Maiko again, her emotions finally starting to settle a bit.

Maiko was smiling gently, like she had a couple of times last week. This smile was so incredibly sad, though, Tohru noticed. Tohru thought that, maybe if Maiko weren't at work, she'd be weeping right alongside her.

"I'll see you next week," Maiko said. It was if all the energy had been drained from her voice, like she was trying not to collapse. Unable to know what to make of this, Tohru just nodded and stood up. Halfway to the door, Maiko's voice stopped her.

"Oh, Tohru? It has to get worse before it gets better."

Confused by Maiko once again, Tohru just bobbed her head again and shut the door behind her.

When Tohru made it out to the waiting room and Kyo looked up at her, he looked about ready to flip. Tohru knew that she must look like she had been crying. She had no idea how bad it was, though. Kyo couldn't take his eyes off of her, off of her damp cheeks, red and swollen eyes, runny nose, the strands of hair sticking to her wet skin.

"Tohru?" he asked quietly, springing to his feet.

Tohru wiped at her cheeks as she got closer to him, trying to pull herself together a bit. "I'm okay," she whispered, reaching up and brushing a finger across Kyo's cheek. "Can we go home?"

"Of course."

Kyo had no idea what to say, so he remained quiet, hoping Tohru would talk first. He had no idea what had gone on in that therapist's office, but it had obviously shattered Tohru.

Tohru didn't say anything until they were at the bottom of the long staircase that led to Shigure's front door. "Kyo-kun…"

Kyo turned to her, eyes full of love and sympathy. For a moment, Tohru could do nothing but stare, thinking that she might get swept away in his gaze, and that that would be perfectly fine.

"Thank you...thank you for always seeing the good in me. And for not taking advantage of that. You mean everything to me."

Kyo felt tears burning in his own eyes, now, and he looked up and blinked rapidly to dispel them. He struggled desperately to find the right thing to say, something that would correctly explain the sheer amount of love, gratitude, and admiration he felt for Tohru in return. When his mind fell blank under the pressure, he settled for a simple, "You're my world, Tohru."

That seemed to satisfy her. She smiled gently and grabbed his hand in hers. "Please don't worry about me," she said, stepping closer to Kyo. "I'm going to be okay."

Kyo slid his arm around her waist and pulled her in, letting his tears fall freely now. He had been waiting for her to say that-that she would be alright. He knew it wasn't okay yet, at this moment, and that he would continue to worry about her. But to hear her reassure him that someday it _would_ be okay, and that she'd be truly happy again someday was the most relieving feeling Kyo had ever experienced. He leaned his cheek against the top of her head, breathing in the smell of her shampoo. "I'm glad," he whispered, his voice cracking slightly. "I'm so glad."

Tohru buried her head into Kyo's chest and wrapped her arms around his torso, returning the hug. "I love you...so very much."

"I love you, too. I will forever...no matter what happens, I'm here."

Tohru let her eyes fall shut, a smile playing at her lips. "I know."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another shameless plug for my Furuba social medias cause I think I post cool stuff sometimes.
> 
> @riceballcatfb on Tumblr, Twitter, and Instagram


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for all the love! Enjoy. 💕

Tohru stared into the pot on the stove in front of her, watching the curry bubble to a boil. She put the lid on and moved away from the stove, leaning forward against the counter instead. How long had it been since she had cooked a proper meal for everyone? Sandwiches, soup, and anything quick and easy involving rice had become her friend on this recovery journey. She was sure everyone was getting tired of it, though they would never say so, and was genuinely relieved when she woke up today with enough energy to be a functioning person and _really_ cook. She had also gotten a lot of laundry done this morning, and scrubbed the bathrooms. She was feeling productive, but also tired now.

Additionally, her relationship with Kyo had been weighing on her mind...

Tohru yelped as she felt arms snake around her waist. Kyo chuckled behind her, nuzzling his head against her shoulder and tightening his grip on her torso. "Sorry," he murmured, pressing a kiss to her neck. Tohru shivered, although she was unsure if it was because of the close contact, or because her heart was still pounding from being startled.

"It's okay. Hi, Kyo-kun," she managed to squeak out. Kyo laughed again at the weak tone of her voice, then paused and turned her around to look at her head-on.

"Wait...were you just really deep in thought, or are you not feeling too good?"

"Both," Tohru admitted. "I'm just tired."

"You've gotten a lot done."

At that, Tohru perked up slightly. "I have!" she agreed. "It feels good."

Kyo smiled gently, flashing a soft expression Tohru knew was reserved only for her.

"We have to get you to therapy here, soon," Kyo said, brushing her hair aside and planting another languid kiss on the side of her neck. Tohru didn't quite understand his sudden inclination to kiss her neck instead of her lips, but she certainly wasn't going to complain.

"Yeah," Tohru mumbled, tangling her fingers in his hair to pull his head closer. He leaned against her willingly, letting her stroke his messy hair. "I don't want to go, though. I'm so tired."

"How about this...I'll reward you when we get back."

Tohru gulped at the possible implication behind his words. They hadn't gone anywhere past kissing and cuddling. She wasn't ready for anything more, and she was pretty sure Kyo knew that. After being violated so badly, it was to be expected that she wouldn't want to be touched sexually for a while. It unsettled her to think about progressing their relationship in that way, which of course made her feel guilty. However…

"Wh-what does that mean?" she stammered.

"It means ya get cuddles," Kyo replied, pulling back. "Why? What did you think I meant?" His innocent tone of voice was belied by the mischievous expression on his face.

Tohru smacked his chest playfully. "God, Kyo."

He grinned at her and tugged on her hand. "C'mon. Let's go."

Tohru puffed her cheeks out into a pout, but followed Kyo to the front door, leaving the burner on low so that the food would stay warm for whenever Yuki woke up. They sat together, Kyo working his feet into his sneakers and Tohru toeing on a pair of flats.

They were mostly quiet on the way to the therapist's office. Even though Tohru knew that talking with Maiko had been helping her, going into that dark office and venting about her problems still made her feel gloomy. As long as Tohru could remember, she'd always bottled up her emotions, going through her burdens alone. Having someone listen so carefully and offer expertise was still a foreign concept. Old habits really do die hard, she supposed. Kyo knew how she was feeling, as he always seemed to, and just walked alongside her quietly, occasionally squeezing her hand in reassurance.

At the office building, Kyo took his usual spot on the couch in the waiting room as Tohru followed Maiko back to her office.

Maiko smiled at Tohru, something that had become much more common throughout their sessions. Tohru returned it, noticing for the first time how pretty Maiko was. The facial features that had originally made her intimidating were really just disguised beauty. Tohru could see that now.

"How are you, Tohru?" Maiko asked, thumbing through her notebook like she did every time Tohru came in. The number of checkmarks lowered each week, which meant that Tohru's assigned pages in the journal stayed relatively blank, which she was grateful for; the only thing that made her more anxious than actually talking to Maiko was the sound of her pen scraping across the paper, noting Tohru's every move.

"I'm good," Tohru said, crossing her ankles in front of her.

"Are you?"

"Mm-hmm. I got a lot done this morning. Laundry, cleaning, and some cooking."

"Ah, good. What did you cook?"

"Curry. Although I didn't get to eat any yet."

"Something to look forward to when you get home," Maiko replied, smiling again. Tohru nodded in agreement.

"Tohru, do you mind if I cut to the chase today?"

Tohru blinked, a bit surprised, but just shook her head. "N-no, go ahead."

"You have been making great improvements since you first came to see me six weeks ago. You started out spending most of your time in bed, and now you manage to do things like cook and clean. You report fewer anxiety attacks every week; in fact, last week you said you had none recently. You've even told me that you've gone to see your friends a few times."

Tohru nodded, pleased to know that Maiko could see a difference in her mental state, but also a little confused as to where the conversation was headed.

"I think it's time that I see you less regularly, on an as-needed basis. That's on one condition, though."

Tohru smiled a bit to herself, lowering her gaze to the floor to hide her excitement. As much as coming here to talk to Maiko had helped, not having to make a weekly trip to her office would be nice. It meant she was getting better. "What's the condition…?"

"You have to promise me that you'll tell your friends Uotani and Hanajima about what happened."

Tohru inhaled sharply, the smile vanishing from her cheeks immediately. That was the one thing she had been avoiding. "B-but…"

Maiko cut her off by jotting a checkmark down in her notebook. Tohru cursed herself mentally.

"Tohru," Maiko said gently, "Do you realize that this isn't something you can avoid forever?"

Tohru nodded again, forcing herself to make eye contact with Maiko.

"They've both made it clear time and time again that they love you and want to support you however they can, right?"

Another nod. It was true. Tohru knew it.

"Remind me of how Shigure, Yuki, and Kyo reacted when you told them what happened to you."

Tohru understood enough of Maiko's psychology tricks by now to know that she hadn't forgotten the boys' reaction; she just wanted Tohru to say it out loud again.

She complied, albeit rather reluctantly.

"Kyo held me while I cried...and Yuki-kun and Shigure-san told me that there was nothing to be ashamed of, and that they were there to support me."

Maiko nodded. "How long have you known them?"

Tohru's timeline of the past few years was a little hazy, but she gave it her best guess. "Almost...two years now?"

"How long have you known Hanajima and Uotani?"

"Since middle school."

"Would you say that they understand you better than the boys do?"

That was easy to answer. Tohru nodded immediately. "Except for Kyo-kun, probably." Sometimes he knew Tohru better than she knew herself, like he was inside her mind, which was both comforting and a bit unsettling at the same time.

"So how do you think they'll react, then?"

Tohru held back a sigh, seeing exactly where this was going. "They'll say the same things the boys did…"

Maiko nodded again, satisfied with this answer. "So what's there to be afraid of?"

"Nothing, I suppose."

Maiko sat quietly for a moment, watching Tohru. Tohru felt her cheeks heat up from being the centerpoint of such an intense stare.

"Okay...I'll do it."

"Do you want help planning out what you're going to say? Going in with a script of sorts could be helpful."

Tohru took a deep breath to steel her resolve. "No...I think I need to do that myself."

Maiko smiled and reached across the desk to pat Torhu's hand. "I bet Kyo will go with you if you ask him to. It might be good to have him there for moral support."

Tohru knew that she wanted to ask Kyo to go with her, but therein lied another problem-she was sure she'd never hear the end of it for telling Kyo about the rape before her best friends.

Noticing Tohru's silence, Maiko stood up and motioned to the door "You have a lot to think about. I'll see you next week, and you can tell me how it went."

Expression grim, Tohru thanked Maiko and headed out to the lobby to get Kyo. He was clearly concerned about her mental state, but he waited until they were outside and a bit away from the building to say anything.

"Are you alright?" he asked gently, pulling on Tohru's forearm to stop her from walking too far ahead of him.

Tohru sighed and looked up at the boy in front of her. His amber eyes were full of worry, his lips pulled into a tight frown. For the past few weeks, she had left her counseling sessions feeling pretty good. She would happily tell Kyo about all the progress she was making. Of course he'd noticed a change in her behavior this week; she wasn't exactly hiding it well. And even if she had been, he would still know. He always knew.

"I...Maiko wants me to tell Uo-chan and Hana-chan about what happened. Then I don't have to come to therapy every week anymore."

Kyo's eyebrows raised in slight surprise, his frown relaxing. "That's good, right?"

Tohru shrugged. "It'll be nice to not have to walk out here every week, I guess."

"That's not what I meant," Kyo corrected her. "Once those two know about what happened, everyone will know. You won't have to tell anyone anymore. That'll feel better, I bet."

Tohru blinked in surprise. It was odd for Kyo to be more optimistic than her. Noticing her confused look, Kyo blushed and scratched at the back of his head awkwardly.

"I mean...they love you. It'll be nice to have them in the loop so they can help, won't it?"

"Yeah...you're probably right," Tohru said softly, taking a step toward Kyo. She leaned her forehead against his chest and laid her hands on his forearms. He leaned down and pulled her closer, resting his chin on top of her head.

"You've got this," he mumbled. "And I'll be there every step of the way, if you want."

Tohru nodded and made a fist around the fabric of Kyo's t-shirt, trying to pull him even closer. He stumbled slightly at her tug.

"Easy," he laughed. "C'mon. Let's go home so you can have your reward."

Tohru pulled back and stared up at Kyo, face red. "Y-you have to stop saying it like that," she stammered, clearly flustered. Kyo smirked and took her hand, starting to walk back towards the house.

"But you're so fun to tease," he protested playfully. Tohru sighed, squeezing his hand.

"I guess I _do_ make it pretty easy."

"Mm-hmm. But that's okay. It's cute."

Tohru spent the remainder of the walk home lost in thought. Kyo let her be quiet, figuring she was just processing today's therapy session. But Tohru was actually busy battling insecurity. Since she had started going to therapy, she had stopped talking to Kyo about her problems as much. She was constantly worried about appearing weak in front of him, and was embarrassed about how she had clung to him at the start of this ordeal. That must have been a big burden on him; he was much more sensitive than he appeared to be. Kyo tried to gently prod her into talking about her feelings often, but she'd mostly brushed him off. She wasn't normal, she wasn't right. She didn't deserve the kindness he was showing her. He deserved a normal relationship, with someone he could talk to, and take places, and-

Tohru was pulled out of thought by the sensation of Kyo's fist being rapped against her forehead gently. She brought a hand up to her head and turned to look at Kyo.

"Watch where you're going, or you'll trip," he said once he had her attention. She nodded and turned to face forward as they began to ascend the long staircase up to Shigure's house.

The internal struggle she had been having could wait, she decided. For now, she was going to sit with Kyo and eat curry, and try to feign normalcy, like she had become so good at throughout her life.

Yes. That would have to do.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Furuba social medias: @riceballcatfb on Tumblr, Twitter, and Instagram


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for my absence. Thank you for your patience and kind words, as always! I'm very wordy in general, so as we're getting to the end of the story, I've been having a hard time wrapping things up. I hope you enjoy!

Kyo stirred from sleep and sat up, rubbing at his eyes. He felt something squirm next to him and jumped, briefly forgetting that Tohru was in his bed with him. Once his heart steadied, he propped himself up on one elbow and looked down at his girlfriend. Her face was so peaceful it almost looked childlike. Her lips were slightly parted, her eyes closed, her breathing steady and deep. She was so, _so_ beautiful.

Kyo reached down and stroked her cheek with a fingertip, causing her face to twitch. He pulled his hand back, not wanting to wake her, and just watched her for a moment instead, going over the day's events in his head. Once they had gotten home from the therapist's office, Tohru had called Uotani and Hanajima to make plans to meet them later in the week. Kyo would tag along, at his own insistence-Tohru had seemed a little reluctant to ask him to come, so he had taken the initiative and invited himself. They had gone up to his room and lied down together, Tohru clearly tired. She had tried to force herself to stay awake for Kyo's sake, insisting that they do something fun like watch a movie, but Kyo had just smiled at her and held her against his chest, letting her drift off to sleep before dozing off, himself.

Judging by the soft orange light coming in through his bedroom window, it must have been about 6:30 now. Kyo knew he should probably wake Tohru up, or she wouldn't be able to sleep tonight. But she looked so happy, so innocent...so like the true Tohru. He didn't want to ruin it.

Luckily for Kyo, Tohru started to come to on her own. She sat up and looked around as if she had forgotten where she was. After a moment, her gaze landed on Kyo, and she smiled softly.

"Hey, sleepy," Kyo said, reaching over and tucking some stray hair behind her ear.

"How long did I sleep?" Tohru asked. Kyo shrugged.

"Couple hours, maybe. Did ya have a good nap?"

Tohru nodded, cheeks hot. She'd discovered recently that she slept best when she was in Kyo's arms, which was embarrassing to admit, even to herself. When had she become so needy?

Kyo just watched her, eyes narrowed, unsure of why exactly she was blushing.

"Thank you for letting me lie with you," Tohru said softly, trying to push down her awkwardness.

"Of course," he responded, leaning over and kissing her forehead.

"I-I should probably go make dinner."

Kyo groaned and leaned over, grabbing her shirt to keep her from getting up. "The damn rat and that dog can figure dinner out for themselves. Come back. It's so cozy with you here."

Tohru giggled and gave in to Kyo's request. She lied back down, and Kyo followed her lead. He pulled the blankets tighter around them and just looked at Tohru for a moment. He had something he needed to say, yet couldn't seem to get his tongue to move.

Feeling the tension exuding off of him, Tohru blushed a bit and filled the silence herself. "Kyo-kun...I have a silly question."

"O-oh...yeah?"

"When you were still possessed by the cat spirit, could you purr?"

Kyo laughed. "Why'd you think of that all of a sudden?"

Tohru shrugged bashfully. Kyo leaned in, nuzzling his head against the side of her neck.

"W-what are you-?" she started, but was cut off by a vibration against her skin.

"I still can."

Tohru giggled and pulled him closer, snuggling in against his chest.

"Tohru…" Kyo murmured, moving his head back a bit so he could look at her properly.

"Yes?" The tension once again radiated from his skin, making her nervous, but she knew she couldn't avoid whatever it was he needed to say indefinitely, and she was already out of stupid questions to ask in hopes of keeping him distracted.

"I need to talk to you."

Tohru tilted her head to the side so she could meet his gaze. "Is something wrong?"

How could he answer that question? As much as things had been improving, there were still also many things wrong.

"I feel like...you're hiding. Hiding from me."

"Hm?" Tohru asked, completely caught off-guard.

"I know you're feeling a lot better, and it makes me really happy...but what happened didn't just go away. You've stopped talking to me about it. You want hugs and kisses, but you don't say much. Like it never happened."

Tohru turned her face away in an attempt to hide her expression, but Kyo caught a glimpse. What he had said clearly stung her. He gulped. He never wanted to hurt her. Never again. But he knew his words were necessary.

"I'm so happy that you're getting back to your usual self. I love seeing your goofy smile again. But I want you to talk to me, so I can face your worries with you. I know something new's been bugging you the past few days."

Tohru's eyes widened slightly at hearing her own words repeated back at her. The night she had seen Kyo's true form...she asked him to talk to her so that they could face his worries together. How could she ask him to do that when she couldn't do it, herself? Especially when he was the only other person involved in what was making her so anxious.

"I…" she choked out, leaning her forehead against his shoulder. "Our relationship scares me sometimes."

Emotion welled up in Kyo's chest at that, but he pushed it down, determined to listen attentively. "What do you mean?" he prompted gently.

"I want to be able to give you everything...give you all of me. I want to do what normal couples do. I want to be able to have sex with you someday...and have kids with you, and just be _normal_. But I'm so scared." By the end, it was evident that she was crying. Her voice was broken, her words punctuated by sobs. Kyo could feel wetness against his bare shoulder, clearly from her tears.

"Tohru…" he mumbled, stroking her hair. "I will _never_ pressure you into something you're not ready for. I'm fine waiting until you're ready. When we get there, I want you to be comfortable...I want to make you feel loved. We won't do anything until you're okay with it. I don't want you to be scared for our first time."

Tohru sniffled as he continued.

"It won't always be like this...I promise. We'll be able to have kids, if you want. And they'll be the best damn kids ever, even though they'll be stuck with me as a dad."

Tohru couldn't help but giggle at that. "They'll be the best kids ever _because_ they'll have you as a dad."

"Nah. It'll be because they'll have you as a mom." He could feel her smile a bit against his shoulder, and he pulled her in closer.

Kyo was glad that she had finally told him about this. Even though she was steadily getting stronger and stronger, he could tell that something new had surfaced over the past few days. As much as he loved this girl and knew that she loved him back, he still felt the need to walk on eggshells occasionally, especially now, after what she had been through. He had once been told that healing is not linear, and Tohru's situation had proven that true. For every step forward, there was also one back in another area.

There was a delicate balance that needed to be maintained-try to support Tohru and get her to open up, while at the same time not being aggressive about it and risking accidentally pushing her away. Words had never been Kyo's strong suit, and he knew it. It had taken him a good amount of time to come up with the little speech he had just given her. But it had apparently worked, and that was what mattered. The weight surrounding his heart was starting to dissolve. He could only hope that the burden she had felt about his expectations for their relationship was fading, as well. But after a moment of peaceful silence, Tohru began to speak again.

"I just...feel like such a child. You've been taking care of me so much."

He stayed quiet for a minute to think over his response. "Tohru, I love you. I _want_ to take care of you when you need me to _because_ I love you."

"But I...I'm almost 18. I should be able to stand on my own by now." Her voice cracked at the end of her sentence, and she buried her face against his chest, trying to mask her vulnerability.

"Don't talk crazy. I mean, you lived in a tent at 15, for fuck's sake. I think you can stand on your own."

"B-but…"

"It's okay to be selfish," he reminded her, tone softening a bit. "Let me take care of you. You're always taking care of everyone else."

He knew it made her happy to take care of others. When the people around her were happy and safe, Tohru felt like the world was functioning properly, even if she were dying on the inside. She'd openly shed tears about anyone else's strife, but push her own troubles down until she could pretend they didn't exist in the first place. Kyo admired her big heart. It was part of the reason he'd fallen in love with her. But it would also kill her if she continued to ignore herself. Pouring and pouring into other people's cups without taking anything in return meant that hers would soon empty. Surely she must realize that.

Or perhaps…

Kyo was reminded then of a time that they sat at the table together, eating somen late one night. Tohru had said something a bit odd, but Kyo had brushed it off at the time. Now it made all too much sense.

" _Stop making me look closer."_

Tohru had spent a good portion of her life ignoring things. She was purposely only looking at the surface of her world. Her emotions and needs had gotten pushed down to where she could pretend they didn't exist at all. She didn't want to look closer. She _couldn't_ look closer. It would undo all the work she'd done to make herself appear happy. Acting like everything was fine allowed her to drown herself in the emotions of others, and put all her effort into taking care of them.

Stupid.

All he could think was how _stupid_ that was of her.

Of anyone on the planet, Tohru Honda deserved love and happiness the most. Denying her feelings to the point of being numb would totally take the opportunity for happiness away from her.

Did she...even know who she was? Had she completely lost herself?

Kyo squeezed her tighter, not noticing his strengthening grip until she yelped slightly.

"S-sorry…" he mumbled, letting go.

She was quiet for a moment, then laid her hand on his cheek. "What's wrong, Kyo-kun?" He must have been unintentionally making a face that tipped her off to his inner turmoil.

_This._ This is what's wrong. This moment was about Tohru, as it should be, and she had already gone back to worrying about him.

"Nothing," he said softly. "I think I'm going to go make us some dinner."

"O-oh...alright."

As Kyo rummaged through his dresser drawers for a t-shirt to put on, he mulled over the conclusion he had drawn just moments ago. He wondered if Uotani and Hanajima had noticed this about Tohru. Surely they had. And he needed to ask them about it when he saw them later this week.

* * *

Kyo didn't think he would ever get tired of seeing Tohru dressed up. She was constantly beautiful to him, of course, always managing to give him butterflies just by looking at him. But seeing her in a sundress with a little bit of makeup on also made his heart jump.

"You look nice," he told her, watching as she slipped into some sandals by the door.

Her cheeks heated slightly at his compliment, and she threw a soft smile his way. "I figured I should look presentable for Hana-chan and Uo-chan."

Kyo rolled his eyes and took her hand, pulling her outside with him. "Dummy. You're always gorgeous."

Tohru giggled and followed along behind him. Uotani and Hanajima had insisted that they meet for lunch, still big foodies. Tohru had been unsure of how to deny that request, though telling her story in public would likely be extremely awkward. Kyo had helped mediate a compromise by picking a small, rather out of the way cafe that was likely to be quiet, even on a Saturday afternoon. As they approached the building, they could see that Hana and Uo were the only other people inside. This was a relief to Kyo, but as he glanced at Tohru's face, she was white as a ghost. She was always pale, but now she looked akin to death.

He led her away from the window so her friends wouldn't see them, and leaned down, taking Tohru's face between his hands. Her whole body was shaking. It made his heart ache.

"Hey, hey," he cooed, rubbing at her cheeks with his thumbs. He needed to keep her from crying, and he was hoping physical touch would ground her.

"It's okay," he continued. "No one else is in there. It's just us and your best friends. It's okay."

Tohru took a deep breath in an attempt to steady herself, and nodded. "Okay," she whispered.

"Okay," Kyo parroted back, releasing her face. He made his way to the front of the cafe again, assuming she was following him. But when he turned around to usher Tohru inside the door he now held open, she was gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Furuba social medias: riceballcatfb on Instagram, Tumblr, and Twitter.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm horrible at responding to comments, but I read all of them, and I appreciate all of you. 💕 thank you for the support!

"Tohru?" he asked weakly, eyes scanning over the surrounding area. Where the hell could she have run off to in the short amount of time it took him to get to the door?

Since he was still holding the door open, Uotani and Hanajima could hear him call Tohru's name, and they quickly appeared behind him.

"Hey, Carrots," Uotani snapped. "What did you do to Tohru?"

"I...I didn't do anything to her," Kyo replied, but his voice lacked the bite it usually took on when he was speaking to Uotani.

"Why on Earth would she run off, then?" Hanajima piped up.

"D-did you see which way she went?" Kyo asked, turning to look at the girls for the first time.

Hanajima and Uotani both gestured to their left.

"I'm gonna go get her," Kyo said quickly, turning to take off in the direction they had pointed.

"Wait," Uotani commanded, grabbing his wrist. He flinched under her touch. Even though the curse was broken now, any unexpected physical contact from the opposite sex still felt dangerous. Noticing his odd reaction, Uo let go, but continued speaking. "What's wrong with her? Why'd she run off?"

Kyo ground his teeth. It wasn't his right to tell them everything, and that wouldn't be good for Tohru, either; she needed to do this herself. He also didn't want her to get too far away to find while they stood here talking. So he offered a brief explanation.

"She came here to say something, but she's scared. Listen, I gotta go get her. She's a fast runner when she wants to be."

With that, Kyo turned and took off down the street, stopping at each corner to scan his surroundings. After a few blocks, he came upon a park. A feeling drew him into it, and after a minute, he came upon a familiar brunette. She was sitting on a bench near a pond, watching ducks swim in circles. Kyo cleared his throat as he approached from behind her, making his presence known so she wouldn't get startled.

Tohru turned and looked at him. If Kyo didn't know any better, he would think she was perfectly fine. She was shaking a bit, still, but seemed calm otherwise; there was no sign that she might have been crying, and when she spoke, her voice was steady.

"Look, Kyo-kun," she said, gesturing to the ducks. "Aren't they cute?"

Kyo really wasn't sure what to say to that.

"Uh...y-yeah, they are. Tohru...you scared me so bad. Why'd you run off without saying anything?"

Her lips pursed into a frown, and she turned back around, eyes focusing on the birds again. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to frighten you."

Kyo held back a sigh and sat next to her.

"I know this is going to be hard," he said softly. "I know that. And I know you're scared. But these are the people who know you the best. They love you."

Tohru shook her head. "I don't think I can do it." Her voice was different suddenly; she sounded as if tears might begin falling from her eyes at any moment now.

Kyo was feeling extremely defeated at this point. Words were not his strong suit to begin with, and considering that she had just sprinted away at lightning speed in an attempt to avoid the situation showed him that maybe she _couldn't_ do it. Maybe she just wasn't ready.

He stayed quiet, reaching out and laying his hand on her knee. He squeezed affectionately. Tohru picked her head up and turned to him once more. "I'm sorry," she choked out.

"What?" he asked, confused. Why was she apologizing to him? She didn't owe an apology to anyone, especially not him.

Before she could answer him, a voice behind them called, "Tohru."

Kyo and Tohru turned to look over their shoulders, where Uotani and Hanajima were now approaching.

Tears welled in Tohru's eyes at the sight of her friends. "You guys…" she whispered, voice laden with remorse. "I'm sorry."

"You haven't done anything wrong, Tohru," Hana assured her. Tohru scooted closer to Kyo, making room for the two girls to sit on the bench with them.

"Carrots says you need to tell us something," Uo said, looking Tohru over.

Tohru looked at Kyo, as if she were trying to decide what she should do based by the look on his face.

"It's up to you," he said softly. He would be here for her either way, and he hoped she knew that. But this was about her. He couldn't make this decision for her.

Tohru took in a deep breath before she started talking. "Yes...I do need to tell you both something. But, please...you have to promise not to get mad at me."

Hanajima and Uotani were clearly confused, but they just nodded and waited for their friend to continue.

"I was…" Tohru's voice faltered there, and she paused before trying again. "I was raped."

Hana's mouth fell open slightly at the words, belying her otherwise calm demeanor. Uotani looked like she was trying to keep herself from springing to her feet. Kyo let out a breath he hadn't even known he was holding. The words were out there, now. Starting was always the hardest part, and now that she had begun, he hoped Tohru would be able to finish without too much trouble.

Like Kyo had wished for, the more Tohru spoke, the easier it became for her. The words flowed off her tongue rather eloquently, as if she had rehearsed this speech at home before coming here.

Yes, she had been raped. But she was okay. She was going to therapy. Her body was healthy. Uttering those reassurances didn't wipe the horrified looks from her friends' faces, though. Tohru had to take several deep breaths to steady herself when she was done speaking. She needed to remind herself that they weren't wearing those expressions because they were angry at her, but because they were angry _for_ her. They were heartbroken because they loved her and she had gone through something traumatic.

But, like Kyo had said to her a few days ago, things wouldn't be this way forever. Tohru was starting to see that, and she desperately needed her friends to see it, too. Maybe then they wouldn't look so sad anymore.

"Really, you guys...I'm alright now."

"But why didn't you…?" Uotani started. From his spot behind Tohru, Kyo shook his head at her. This wasn't the time to ask questions like that. Not yet.

Uotani got the message and shut her mouth before simply leaning over and pulling Tohru into a tight hug. Hanajima quickly joined in on the embrace.

The three girls whispered together for a minute, still clinging to each other while Kyo watched silently from the other side of the bench. He couldn't really hear what they were saying, but did catch bits and pieces. Hanajima stroked Tohru's hair and murumered, "It's alright. We're here for you now, too." Uotani was mostly quiet, clearly trying to control her rage, but she did mumble her agreement to Hanajima's sentiment.

When they had finally let go of Tohru and dried their tears, Hanajima claimed that she was hungry and desperately needed lunch before she died, which Kyo rolled his eyes at, although it wasn't a surprising statement considering how dramatic she usually was. It seemed like they were kind of brushing everything under the rug. But then again, Kyo had to admit that he knew nearly nothing about girls in general, let alone the dynamics of female friendships. It would likely be discussed more, sometime, when he wasn't present. Maybe, right now, a distraction would be good for Tohru, anyway. It might show her that people can mourn openly, then still get up and keep going. Grief was something you learned to live with-it was always present deep down inside you, but it also didn't always weigh you down like chains wrapped around your ankles.

As they walked back to the restaurant, Kyo stayed behind the girls, hands in his pockets, watching Tohru's back carefully, as though he could gauge how she was feeling based just on the way she was walking. Hanajima was next to her, a ridiculous black parasol in one hand, and her other palm busy rubbing Tohru's back. Kyo was so preoccupied in his thoughts that he didn't notice Uotani slip away from her friends and fall into step next to him. She leaned over and bumped a fist against his shoulder.

"Eh?" he asked, rubbing his shoulder and glancing over at her.

"Carrots," she said, running a hand through her long blonde hair. "Is she really okay?"

Kyo hesitated. One thing he had always admired about Uotani, though he would rather die than admit it, was that she spoke candidly. Not just to Tohru and Hanajima, but to _everyone_ , including him. He figured he owed it to her to be that honest in return.

"Sometimes," he replied, taking in a deep breath. "Some days she seems almost normal, cooking and cleaning and stuff. Like she's just trying to forget about it. Then sometimes she'll break down and I don't know what to do to calm her down." He shrugged, looking down at his shoes.

"Well…" Uotani let out a long breath, clearly thinking out her reply carefully. "You know just as well as I do that she tries to carry everything by herself. But we can't let her."

Kyo nodded his agreement. Honestly, having Uotani and Hanajima know about what had happened to Tohru was relieving to him. It felt like he had backup now, more people who loved and understood Tohru and could help him support her.

"Text us and stuff, please, 'kay?" she added. "We're in this together."

With that, she smacked his shoulder once more and moved up ahead to catch up with the other girls. At the door to the cafe, Hana and Uo went in first. Tohru lingered back, sidling up to Kyo. He leaned down and planted a kiss on her forehead.

"Are you okay?" he asked softly.

Tohru hesitated for a second, then nodded.

"I think so. I don't really know."

Kyo couldn't help but chuckle a bit at that. "Fair enough. Listen, Tohru...I think you should hang out with them, just you guys. I'm going to go home. I'll be waiting for you there."

The next thing he knew, two small arms were wrapped around his midsection. He stiffened at the sudden hug -- hugging Tohru in private was still awkward at times, and being able to do it in _public_ was even weirder. He relaxed quickly, though, and hugged her back.

"Thank you," she murmured, pulling back to look at him. "I love you."

Kyo smiled gently and bent over again, giving her a real kiss this time. "I love you, too. I'll see you later."

Kyo walked away from the cafe, checking over his shoulder every once in a while to make sure that Tohru wasn't making another run for it for some reason. Once he couldn't see the small building anymore, he relaxed and focused on walking up the incline that led to Shigure's house. A single thought swirled around his mind, filling him with a sense of relief that was absolutely indescribable.

_She's okay, she's okay, she's okay._

_She's okay._

_She'll be okay._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Furuba social medias: riceballcatfb on Instagram, Twitter, and Tumblr


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, y'all. I'm sorry, but I lied; I'm going to need to get this story to at least 15 chapters before I wrap it up. I tried to make it work with 14 chapters, but quickly realized that there's just no way. Like I've said before, I'm wordy 😂I hope you'll still stick with me.

When he got home, Kyo tried to occupy himself with _anything_ to keep from thinking about Tohru so much. He tried doing the last of his homework, stretching on the front porch, reading some more of that ridiculous Mogeta manga that he couldn't seem to put down for some reason. Nothing worked, and he ended up sitting cross-legged on the floor of the hallway, his gaze clinging to the phone in front of him.

After a few hours, the phone rang and Kyo scrambled to his feet and grabbed the receiver. As expected, it was Tohru on the other end of the line. She'd borrowed Hana-chan's cell phone to tell him that they were done hanging out. Kyo glanced out the window and noted the pastel-purple color that the sky was stained.

"Tohru, wait for me there. Make Hanajima or Gangster Girl stay with you. I'll come get you."

Tohru hesitated before speaking. "Kyo-kun, I think I could…"

Kyo shook his head, despite the fact that she couldn't see him. "No. Wait there."

"Okay," she agreed after a moment.

Once they'd hung up, Kyo pushed his feet into his sneakers and headed down the path leading to town. His thoughts inevitably wandered, and he got a bit frustrated. How could she say she could walk home alone at night after what had happened? He knew that Tohru was only trying to save him the trouble of going back into town, but it _wasn't_ any trouble to begin with. He would much rather wear out his legs running to that cafe to keep her safe than risk something happening to her again. Someone doing something to her again…

Kyo made it to the cafe in record time and took a moment to catch his breath before opening the door. Once he was inside, he scanned the room and found the three girls in a booth in the back corner. Tohru noticed him and her face immediately lit up, sending a shiver down his spine. It was still amazing that she was always so happy to see someone like him.

He approached the table and leaned forward, pressing a kiss to her head before greeting the other girls with her. "Thank you for waiting with her."

"Of course," Hana said, her voice its usual monotone. If Kyo didn't know any better, he'd think she was feeling inconvenienced. He knew this was just how she was, and the way she was looking at Tohru with so much love in her eyes squelched any flames of doubt that might have been lingering.

Uo voiced her agreement and wrapped her arms around Tohru's shoulders, Hanajima joining the group hug shortly after. The three of them were crammed into one side of the booth for some reason, and they had effectively squished Tohru into a sandwich between them, but she didn't seem to mind; she just closed her eyes for a moment, placing her slender hands over their arms.

After a moment, Hana and Tohru made their way towards the door, still lost in conversation, apparently oblivious to the fact that Uotani had a tight grip on the side of Kyo's t-shirt, keeping him in place next to the booth.

Kyo sighed to himself but tried to keep up a polite pretense. "What is it?"

"You can trust us," Uo said simply.

Kyo blinked, a little confused. Luckily, she continued.

"We won't let anything happen to Tohru. We would never. You can trust us with her, ya know."

"I know." He really did know that. He trusted them with Tohru completely. She was precious to him, but he never had any doubts about Uo and Hana's will to care for her. Uo must have sensed the sincerity behind his words, because she nodded in satisfaction and let him go.

At the door, the girls waved their farewell before starting to head off towards the train station. As Kyo and Tohru watched their retreating backs, Kyo was overcome with an odd sense of fear. "W-wait," he called after them.

They paused and turned back towards him, heads cocked in confusion.

"We...we should walk you home. At least to the station," he insisted, surprised at how his voice momentarily trembled.

Hana and Uo's faces softened at this. "Don't worry about it, Carrots," Uo called. "I can take care of us. Just get Tohru home safe."

Kyo breathed a quiet sigh of relief. Of course. Uotani knew how to fight if she needed to. "Okay," he agreed. They waved and started walking again. Kyo watched them until he felt Tohru lace their fingers together. He looked down at her and immediately almost melted at the expression on her face.

Her eyes were filled with love and admiration, her lips quirked up into a small smile. Why, he didn't know, but he wasn't going to complain.

"Thank you," she said softly, giving his hand a squeeze.

"For what?"

"For worrying about my friends."

"O-oh…" An old, stubborn side of Kyo threatened to surface for a moment and insist that he wasn't worried about Wave Girl and the Yankee. But he knew that wouldn't be true.

"Of course," he said instead. "They're important to you, so they're important to me."

He didn't really understand why she blushed so heavily at that comment, but before he could ask, Tohru started pulling him towards home.

"Come on," she said gently. "I'm tired. I bet you haven't eaten?"

"Oh, uh, no…" Kyo used his free hand to scratch at the back of his neck awkwardly. There was no way in hell he would tell her that he had spent over three hours just waiting for her to call.

"What do you want when we get home?"

"I can cook for myself, don't worry about it."

"Cooking for you makes me happy," she insisted, and Kyo couldn't help but smile in response. After a few moments of comfortable silence, he voiced a question.

"How did everything go after I left?"

"Oh, it was fine. It was nice getting to hang out with them."

"Did you talk more about…?"

Tohru bit her lip and shook her head. "No, and really, I'm glad we didn't. It was nice to get away from it for a while."

Kyo could understand that. It _did_ make him wonder, for a moment, if he tried to talk about it too much, however. But he lived with her and they didn't; he had much more time with Tohru, so it was bound to come up more often.

When they got home, Tohru ended up making somen, a dish that stirred fond memories within both of them. They ate together before retreating upstairs to her room.

"Everyone's probably asleep by now," she mumbled, curling herself against his chest. He pulled the pink comforter over them before answering.

"Maybe. Who knows what Shigure's sleep schedule is like."

She giggled at that, planting a kiss to his collarbone. "We have to be quiet."

Kyo smirked. "If the damn rat has a problem, he can come talk to me about it like a man."

"Shh," Tohru cooed, but she was laughing, so he didn't take her request seriously. Instead, he tickled her sides, desperate to hear more of her happy giggles. He succeeded.

After a moment, she batted his hands away half-heartedly and he gave up. His hand came to rest on her hip, which he squeezed to pull her closer. Tohru's chest was against Kyo's now, her face even with his, just millimeters of empty space between their lips. Kyo used his thumb to draw lazy circles against the smooth skin of her hip, his eyes getting heavy. After a moment, Tohru shook slightly under his touch. He sprung back to attention.

"Wh-what is it? Are you okay?"

Her cheeks were flushed, but she nodded. "Y-yes. That just feels nice…"

He glanced down at his hand, his cheeks reddening as well. His hand had managed to slide forward to the very bottom of her stomach. If he had gotten much lower…

He pulled it back as quickly as possible, causing Tohru to giggle. Kyo just looked at her quietly, not sure how to recover from that faux pas. Before he could dwell on it too much, though, Tohru reached up and cupped his face in her hands, guiding him forward until their lips met. He let her lead, and she poured an incredible amount of passion into the kiss, more than he had ever felt from her before. When they broke apart to breathe, Kyo averted his gaze, clearing his throat awkwardly.

"Kyo?" she asked softly.

He just hummed in response, still recovering.

"C-can we…?" As she spoke, her hand drifted down his torso, eventually stopping at the bottom of his shirt, where it tugged the fabric upwards.

Kyo stiffened, suddenly painfully aware of his body. The teenage boy within him screamed at him to say yes, but he controlled himself and asked, "Are you sure?"

Tohru's eyes were squeezed tightly shut, her face pink, but she nodded and peppered more kisses along his collarbone. He was still frozen, unsure of how to react.

"Please," she whispered. That was the end of any willpower he had left. He leaned forward and moved her hair away from her neck so he could kiss the soft skin there. He heard her breath hitch in her throat.

"You have to promise to tell me if it gets to be too much," he mumbled against her flesh. Despite the muffled tone of his voice, she could tell that he was deadly serious. She nodded and laced her fingers in his hair, holding him in place as he sucked at her pulse-point.

If he'd thought Tohru said "I love you" a lot in daily life, he discovered that she was inclined to say it even _more_ often during sex. It was a whispered phrase that fell from her lips almost continuously, her voice breaking with each movement he made. Although he knew she was sure of his love, and despite how excessively the phrase was uttered, Kyo made sure to return the sentiment every single time. Maybe it would finally drill it into her brain. He wasn't going anywhere. He'd never leave her side. She could ask for anything and he would do it.

He loved her, he loved her, he loved her. And that wasn't going to change.

Even after they had finished and were lying in each other's arms, Tohru asleep, the words continued to echo through his mind.

God, did he love her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Furuba social medias: riiceballcatfb on Instagram, Tumblr, and Twitter


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter starts to connect things back to the manga, but still in an AU sense. The journey will be different, but the end result the same. So there might be MANGA SPOILERS here!
> 
> I hope you enjoy! Thank you for the support, as always. 💕

After losing some very important people in her short lifetime, every farewell was difficult for Tohru. Even if Kyo was just going to the store, or out for a jog, anxiety welled up in her chest, reminding her that there was truly no guarantee he'd ever come back. So saying goodbye to Maiko was hard. She hadn't expected it, but she could feel her eyes tearing up at the end of their last appointment.

Maiko reached across the desk and lightly tapped her index finger on the back of Tohru's hand, grounding her. Tohru blinked her vision back into focus and waited for Maiko to speak again.

"Tohru...you've said a lot of goodbyes in your life so far, haven't you?"

She shrugged slightly, averting her gaze. "Yes, I guess so."

"You've said really hard goodbyes, at least."

That was something Tohru could agree with wholeheartedly. Dad, Mom...the two people that had mattered most to her were both taken in the blink of an eye, and she had been left alone to process the aftermath of life without them. That was hard. It was still hard to think about, sometimes.

"But this isn't goodbye," Maiko continued, leaning back against her desk chair, hand moving away from Tohru's. "I'm still going to be here if you need me again. I'm not leaving you. I'm a phone call away."

Tohru inhaled shakily and nodded, looking over at the woman who had come to know so much about her over the past several weeks. There were only a few people in the entire world that knew as many personal details about her as Maiko did. Even though Tohru knew it was strictly professional to the therapist, she couldn't help but take it personally, herself. It was her life they had been dealing with, after all.

"And this isn't an ending," Maiko continued. Tohru watched as she picked up a pad of sticky notes and started to scrawl out her name and phone number in her messy handwriting. "This is a beginning for you. You have a good, solid foundation, so you can move forward now. You have people that love you and will be there for you. Let them lend you strength. Especially your boyfriend out there." She smiled and handed the note to Tohru. "This is my cell phone number."

"Thank you, Maiko…" Tohru choked out, folding the note neatly so she could ask Kyo to put it in his pocket when they left. "For everything."

"It's been a pleasure to work with you, Tohru."

In the waiting room, Kyo didn't hear Tohru come out of the office. They had laid out new magazines, and he was particularly engrossed in an article in a martial arts catalog. Tohru sat next to him on the couch and just looked at him for a moment, letting his presence soothe her aching heart. She hardly ever saw him read. Over the years, she'd picked up on the fact that he rather enjoyed it, but he'd gone to lengths to hide the hobby from everyone, only picking up a random manga here and there, as though it were an embarrassing thing to like. She didn't understand that, but had never pressed the topic. She touched his knee.

"Do we need to get some of those for the house?" she asked, giggling lightly.

Kyo jumped at her touch and rushed to drop the magazine back onto the table, cheeks a bit red. "Nah, they're a waste of money. Anyway, how'd it go?"

"It was…" Tohru trailed off there and bit her lip. Kyo didn't try to pry. He just leaned his head against her shoulder.

"I'm sorry," he whispered. He felt her take a few shaky breaths before kissing the top of his head and standing up.

"I'm okay," she assured him, wiping at an escaped tear. "Are you ready to go home?"

"I have somewhere I wanna take you, actually, if that's okay."

Tohru was surprised, but nodded in agreement. "Of course. I'd love that, Kyo-kun."

Tohru had always prided herself on understanding the layout of their neighborhood pretty well, but as Kyo led her by the hand, they headed down streets she didn't recognize. When they stopped, they were in front of a very new-looking building. There wasn't even a sign detailing what kind of business it was yet.

"Wh-what's this?" Tohru asked. Kyo dropped her hand and opened the door for her.

"Go see for yourself."

Hesitantly, Tohru stepped into the building and was immediately greeted by a mewing noise. She looked down to see a calico cat rubbing against her shin. She looked around the rest of the room, noticing several more cats, along with people lounging on couches, drinking coffee and petting the felines.

Her eyebrows shot up in surprise and she turned around to look at Kyo.

"It's the first cat cafe in our neighborhood. I thought you'd like it here," he explained. He was already surrounded by a herd of cats, himself, which Tohru knew always bugged him. Though he was no longer part cat, they were still very attracted to him, much to his disappointment. But he'd brought her here anyway, knowing he'd get attacked by kittens, because she would like it. She could feel her heart swell at the realization.

"Kyo-kun…" she murmured. She tried to step closer to him, wanting to steal a quick kiss, but it would have meant stepping on cats.

"It's okay," he assured her, reaching out and brushing the back of her hand with his own. "This'll be fun."

Tohru giggled. There was no way he meant it, but _she_ for one was definitely looking forward to this experience.

"I hate to make you do this...but can you go order some tea for us? I'll try to ditch some of these guys and get us a seat." He held out his hand, offering her yen to pay for drinks.

Tohru ordered their drinks and spotted Kyo sitting on a small loveseat near the window. His pack was down to three cats now, and he seemed to like one more than the others, as it was getting all his attention; he scratched behind its ears absentmindedly as he stared out the window and waited for Tohru.

She perched next to him on the couch, handing him one of the two steaming mugs of tea. He leaned over and pecked her cheek in thanks.

"You like this one, hm?" she asked, leaning closer to give the tabby cat a pet, herself.

Kyo shrugged. "If I were gonna adopt any, it'd be this one. He's mellow."

Tohru tilted her head to the side. "Mm, yeah, he's not really attacking you like the others did." The cat was simply perched on the arm of the couch, quietly enjoying the attention he was getting. It was understandable that he was Kyo's favorite, for that reason.

"Hey, Tohru," Kyo said, bringing her out of her thoughts. "Can we talk?"

She hummed and nodded in response, blowing on her tea to cool it a bit. She was admittedly a little nervous about what he might want to say, but she tried to ignore that feeling of anxiety, knowing from her time and work in therapy that it was likely irrational.

"How was your appointment today? Was it hard...saying goodbye?"

Tohru noticeably stiffened at that. Kyo set his mug down on the table next to the loveseat and put his hand on her knee, instead. It was warm from holding onto the cup of tea, and the heat of it against her leg was comforting to her. It gave her the presence of mind she needed to respond.

"A little," she admitted. "But Maiko said something interesting...she said that this isn't an ending, it's just a new beginning for me. And that I have you to help me, so I'll be alright. I think that's true."

She smiled up at him, her grin mostly exuding its usual warm, goofy aura. To anyone else, that smile would have looked perfectly normal. But he could see the tinge of sadness to it. He smiled back, trying not to let his own melancholy cloud it. All he wanted was for her to be happy. Saying goodbye to someone else couldn't be easy for her, after all she'd been through.

Which made something else he'd been considering mentioning seem all the more selfish…

He ignored the bitter taste in his mouth and pulled her in, kissing the side of her head. He could feel people staring at them, but wasn't sure if it was because a fresh wave of cats had arrived at his feet, or because of the blatant affection he was giving Tohru. Either way, his cheeks flushed a bit and he let go, deciding he'd need to be a bit more subtle so Tohru wouldn't get embarrassed.

"Kyo-kun," she said, squeezing the hand that rested on her leg. "We have to turn in our final career plans at school next week. Did you fill yours out yet?"

He wasn't sure what the sudden subject change was about, but he indulged her question.

"No...I don't know what I wanna do. It's all so new, having a future and all that...ya know?" He leaned back against the couch and sipped at his tea. He looked like he had something else he wanted to say, so Tohru just watched him expectantly.

"All I know is...I want to be with you," he added finally, looking back over at his girlfriend.

Tohru's cheeks heated instantly. Honestly, she hadn't filled out her own worksheet for that reason, either. She couldn't think of anything besides him and _their_ collective future together. After all that had happened, all that he had supported her through, anything else seemed insignificant in comparison.

"I want to be with you, too," she whispered, voice so soft it was barely audible.

Kyo rubbed his thumb against her cheek. Tohru flinched at the feeling of wetness being streaked across her skin. When had she started crying? "Hey. It's okay. That's a good thing."

"I know." And she really did. That's why she was teary-eyed.

"Have you filled out yours?"

She shook her head.

Kyo bit his lip and looked away for a moment before steeling his resolve and turning back to Tohru. "You might be mad at me for saying this...but maybe you should take some time off before finding a full-time job."

She raised an eyebrow, a bit confused. "What do you mean?"

"Ya know, like how some people take a gap year between high school and college? After everything you've been through this year, that sort of thing might be good for you."

His concern for her was evident, and it made her feel both special and a little guilty, an odd combination of emotions to have sitting in her chest.

"That would be nice," she admitted. "But I have to make money somehow."

"Tohru…"

"Hm?"

"Let me do it. Let me work and bring in money for a while. You should rest."

"Th-that's not fair to you, Kyo-kun, and besides…" she rambled nervously. Besides, who said they were going to live together immediately following graduation? Despite all the thoughts about their future together, Tohru had planned to get her own place for so long that the idea was cemented in her mind. Was he asking…?

She realized very quickly that she would be okay with that.

He took a deep breath and pushed past his embarrassment to say, "When I said I want to be with you, I meant it. I want to be with you forever."

She must have looked taken aback, because Kyo immediately backtracked a bit.

"A-and don't take that like a...proposal, or anything," he mumbled, scratching at the back of his head awkwardly. "When I do that, I'm gonna do it right. I just...I love you, Tohru." He leaned over, resting his forehead against yours.

"I love you too," she whispered. "So much."

"Let me take care of you while you finish getting back to your normal self."

"I-"

Kyo shook his head, his bangs tickling Tohru's face. "You've spent your whole life taking care of other people. Let me do this for you."

She nodded in turn, taking a deep breath to steady herself. Not only was he offering to completely support her for a year, he'd just outright admitted that there would come a time when he would propose marriage. Tohru didn't know how much more her heart could take.

"That would be nice. Thank you."

"Anything for you."

Heat rose to Tohru's cheeks, and as Kyo pulled back, she turned her face away to hide the blush. How silly to be embarrassed over something like that, to be embarrassed in front of him at all.

"A-are you going to work at Master's dojo?" she asked, strategically trying to change the subject a bit.

For some reason, that question obviously made Kyo uncomfortable. He grimaced and looked down at his mug, but he'd already drained it of its fluid, so he ended up just setting it down awkwardly.

"I got offered a job by one of Master's friends…"

"That's amazing, Kyo-kun!" Tohru half-yelled, pride swelling in her chest. Kyo reached over and patted her knee to quiet her down a bit.

"I'm not taking it."

"But...why not?"

"It's...far away from here. And I know you're not ready to leave Tokyo, and that makes sense. All I want is to be with you. I'm sure Master will find me a job around here, if he can't give me one himself."

When Kyo finally was able to force himself to look over at Tohru, her gaze was focused on his face, full of intensity. He could feel a blush creep up from his collarbone to the tips of his ears. He knew that look. That was her determined face, the one she only wore when she was dead-set on something.

"Let's go."

"Wh-what?"

"Let's go," she repeated. "Wherever that job is, let's go."

Kyo couldn't help but just stare at her for a minute, eyes wide. "Tohru…"

She gave him a half-smile and looked down at her own empty mug. "Let's talk about it at home?" she suggested, standing and smoothing out her skirt.

He nodded, gulping down the lump in his throat and standing with her.

_She couldn't be serious..._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Furuba socials: riceballcatfb on Instagram, Tumblr, and Twitter


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this is kind of short, but I think you'll like what it sets up. 👀
> 
> The chapter count listed is accurate now; chapter 16 will be the last. Thank you for your support, as always. Enjoy!

The couple was quiet on the way home, simply holding hands and watching the sunset before them. Once they made it home, they discovered that they were alone, a note from Shigure and Yuki on the kitchen counter explaining their absences. It wasn't surprising when the house was empty, anymore, but still was always a pleasant discovery- being alone together in a quiet, peaceful house was refreshing after years of hustle and bustle.

Tohru wandered upstairs, Kyo close behind. Her quiet demeanor was making him nervous. Silence between the two of them wasn't usually uncomfortable, but there was an odd aura surrounding Tohru now. He was honestly terrified at the idea that he'd upset her- he'd literally rather die than be the reason her smile ever disappeared. He lingered in the doorway to her bedroom with his eyes on the floor, feeling a little awkward and out of place as Tohru quickly changed into pajamas. When Kyo finally looked up again, she was sitting on her bed, leaving plenty of room for him next to her. He just stared at her for a moment, waiting for permission to join her. She raised an eyebrow in confusion and patted the empty spot on the mattress.

"Are you okay?" she asked quietly as he made his way over.

He felt like he should have been asking _her_ that question.

"Y-yeah...but you seem upset."

She pursed her lips and turned her gaze away from Kyo, fiddling with a loose thread on her pajama shirt. "I'm not."

He watched her carefully, waiting for her to continue. When she didn't, he prompted, "Then, what are you?"

Tohru sniffled a bit. Kyo could see how glassy her eyes were getting, and sighed, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

"I'm sorry, Tohru...I shouldn't have said anything about the job."

"I'm glad you told me," she reassured him, leaning into his touch. "I want to know these things."

"But it made you upset."

"I don't want to leave," she admitted, voice shaky. "I don't want to say goodbye to Hana-chan, Uo-chan, Yuki, Shigure, and everyone else. I'd miss them."

Kyo felt wetness on the shoulder of his shirt and pulled her in closer, nuzzling his nose against the top of her head.

"I know. So we're not going. It's okay."

She shook her head rapidly and pulled out of his grasp, looking at him head-on. Her face was messy. He hadn't even noticed that she was wearing a little makeup earlier, but now it was smeared under her eyes. Her nose was runny, tears leaving stains down her cheeks, her lower lip trembling. He hadn't seen her this upset in a while. She'd had crying spells since she was raped, of course, but they'd dwindled in number and intensity as time went on, especially recently.

He did this to her. He was so stupid.

Kyo looked down at the mattress, unable to hold her gaze any longer. But Tohru reached out and used her thumb to tilt his chin up, forcing him to look her in the eye again.

"You're not staying here just because of me."

"Tohru, I-"

"You're _not_ ," she insisted firmly. "I won't let you do that."

"I don't care where I work. I want to do what's best for you."

"But what about what's best for _you_?" she cried, releasing his chin and covering her face instead. Her shoulders trembled with a sob.

Kyo was experiencing an odd combination of emotions- his heart was breaking at the sight of Tohru being so hysterical, but he was also incredibly confused. How had it gotten this far? It had started off as such a simple conversation back at the cafe. Just a brief exchange of information- yes, he'd gotten offered a job, but no, he wasn't going to take it. It should have ended there. But then Tohru let her stubborn side surface before she really thought about what she was saying, and the dynamic had totally changed.

He didn't understand, but he knew he didn't want her to cry anymore. He had to do something to stop it, although he didn't have a clue as to what that action could be.

"You have a whole life ahead of you now," she continued, rubbing at her eyes. "You don't have to stay in Tokyo anymore. You can go wherever you want, and do whatever you want." She blinked to clear her vision a bit, then looked back to Kyo. "I'm not going to be the one who stops you from really living."

_Was she insane?_

"Tohru...hey. Are you kidding me? You're the one who gave me this life. You're what I want. I don't give a shit about what dojo I work at, or even if I work at a dojo at all. You're…" he trailed off there, losing his nerve for a moment. To fill the silence, he took her face in his hands and leaned forward, pressing their lips together sweetly. This seemed to calm her down; although she didn't really kiss him back, her breathing had steadied.

"You're everything," he finished, pulling back to look at her.

Tohru sighed and tried to pull her face away, but he tightened his grip a bit.

"Did you hear me?" he asked.

What could he do to make her understand?

Up until now, this entire relationship had been uncharted territory for the two of them. It was admittedly still awkward and confusing at times. But he didn't care. He'd never wanted anything as much as he wanted to be with her. He never thought it was possible to love someone so much, but she'd managed to completely change his outlook. She was obviously craving commitment and reassurance right now, but Kyo wasn't sure how to show it. He'd tried everything he could think of, now. She wouldn't listen to his words, so what the hell was he supposed to do?

"Tohru."

"I heard you," she whispered.

"Tell me what you're thinking, then."

"I've been such a burden on you," she choked out. "You've helped me through everything, and now I'm going to be selfish and keep you here? That's not right. That's not what love is."

Kyo could feel tears start to sting his own eyes, but gritted his teeth in an attempt to ignore them; crying alongside Tohru right now would only lead to disaster, he was sure of that much.

"If I didn't want to be in Tokyo...if I didn't want to be with you...do you really think I would offer to stay? When was the last time you saw me do something I didn't want to without at least puttin' up a fight first?"

That actually earned him a small laugh, and he had to hold in a sigh of relief.

"Listen...we don't have to decide right now. Later, if you want to go, we can. But we're not doing anything like that until you're sure you're ready. I absolutely refuse to leave you here and go off by myself. I could never. Got that?"

Tohru sighed and leaned forward, resting her head against his shoulder.

"I'm sorry," she said softly.

"Don't apologize to me," he said sternly, planting a kiss to her temple.

When she sat back up, Tohru noticed a black mark on the shoulder of his shirt. "O-oh…"

Kyo followed her gaze, then chuckled. "You never wear makeup. Why'd you put it on if you were just gonna cry it all off later?"

She rolled her eyes at him, but her soft smile put cracks in her fake, sassy attitude. "I didn't plan on crying like a maniac today."

"Well you look like a raccoon," he teased, trying to keep a straight face as she blushed madly.

"You're so mean," she pouted. Kyo drew her back in against his chest.

"You're a beautiful raccoon, though."

She snorted in laughter and wiped away the last of her tears. "And you always tell me that _I'm_ a dork. Are you hearing yourself?"

"Your goofiness is rubbing off on me."

He ran his fingers up and down her spine lightly, letting himself be distracted by his own thoughts for a minute. When he snapped out of it and looked down at her, she was drowsy. He kissed the top of her head and laid her down against her pillow, slipping out of bed. She groaned in protest and opened her eyes half-way.

"I'll be back," he whispered, kissing her nose and tiptoeing out of the room. Once he was in the hallway, he went to his room and picked his phone up off the desk, where he'd left it all day to charge. He tapped the icon for his bank app and logged in. Kyo was honestly very good with money, and he'd always known that about himself. He'd wear the same clothes until they were too tattered to be presentable before breaking down and buying new ones. He never ate out, never went out to amusement parks or karaoke like a lot of teenagers he knew. Admittedly, he'd just never seen the point. So although he hadn't checked his bank account in a while, he assumed he would have a decent bit saved up from what the family deposited every month as a stipend. His eyebrows raised in surprise when he saw his balance, though. _That_ was more than he'd expected. Now time to spend some of it.

He knew what he would be doing tomorrow morning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Furuba socials: riceballcatfb on Instagram, Twitter, and Tumblr


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Why, hello there. Being sick for three weeks in October messed with not only my timeline for this story, but also for the prompts I had set up. So now I'm playing catchup. Sorry. 😅

"Have a great day, sir, and good luck."

Kyo couldn't bring himself to respond. His hands were shaking so badly that he worried he'd drop the bag. Thank God the door to the shop was propped open--he wasn't sure he'd have the strength to push through it himself.

As he wandered back toward home, he tried to calm himself down by making a plan to get into the house with his new purchase _without_ drawing Tohru's attention to it. She'd already seemed curious and maybe a little suspicious when he'd said he needed to go out _alone_ this morning. It wouldn't be a surprise if he was attacked with questions the minute he stepped inside.

He'd obviously have to ditch the bag. Not only did it have the name of the store printed on it, but it was also a very bright green, for some reason--a poor marketing choice, in his opinion, and also very inconvenient at the moment. He could take the item out and put it in his pocket, but it would be bulky and therefore also catch Tohru's eye. He could take it out of the box it came in, but there was a less-than-small chance that he'd lose it that way.

Kyo sighed and stopped next to a trash can. He took the box out of the bag and shoved it deep into his jeans' pocket before tossing the bag. That would be his best bet. Maybe Tohru was in her room or the bathroom, giving him time to hide the item somewhere in his room.

Somehow, that was exactly the case. Kyo didn't consider himself to be particularly lucky when it came to things like this, but whatever deity existed must have decided to let things go his way this afternoon. He hid the box in the top drawer of his dresser, shoving it under a t-shirt, and went back to Tohru's door. He knocked gently, not wanting to wake her if she was taking a nap. But she opened the door immediately after he knocked, almost like she was waiting there for him.

"Kyo-kun, you're back!" She grinned at him, the smile so contagious that Kyo briefly forgot his shaken nerves and smiled back. "How was your errand?"

"O-oh, that...it was good," he stammered nervously. "So, have you eaten lunch? I was thinking about making something."

"Why don't we make some somen together?"

He nodded and reached up, stroking her cheek before leaning down and capturing her lips in a sweet kiss. When he pulled back, Tohru's cheeks were slightly red from his sudden burst of affection, but she was also smiling widely at him.

"Sounds good," he answered finally. She laced her fingers with his and practically dragged him down the stairs.

Once they were in the kitchen, Kyo leaned back against the counter and watched her gather ingredients from the pantry. She was humming some made-up song, like she often used to. Kyo hadn't realized how much he'd missed that sound. "You're in a good mood," he commented.

Tohru nodded and handed him a package of somen noodles. "I feel good today."

He ripped into it and moved to dump the contents into a pot.

"Good."

Suddenly, Tohru moved behind him and wrapped her arms around his torso, resting her hands on his chest. He reached up and cupped her small left hand with his larger one. As he brushed his fingers across her knuckles, he couldn't help but blush a bit as his thoughts wandered to the box sitting in his dresser...

She pressed her nose up against his back and nuzzled in a bit, causing Kyo to chuckle in response. "Someone's feeling lovey."

She nodded again, inhaling deeply, breathing in the scent of his body wash and their laundry detergent. "Because I love you."

"I love you, too," he murmured, releasing her hand and turning around to face her. He planted his hands on her hips.

"Are you okay?" she asked softly.

"Hm? Y-yeah, fine. Just hungry."

"You seem nervous."

He _was_ feeling jittery, but he wasn't about to tell her that.

Instead, he gently bonked a fist against her forehead. "Dummy."

Tohru giggled a bit and pulled away to work on the dipping sauce while Kyo monitored the noodles.

When everything was complete, they portioned out the noodles and sauce. "Wanna eat upstairs?" Kyo asked.

"That sounds nice." She stood up on her tiptoes, attempting to reach the tray that was stored on top of the fridge, but fell incredibly short of making it. Kyo chuckled and reached up, getting the tray down with ease. Tohru fake-pouted.

"You're puny," he reminded her, kissing her forehead and handing her the tray. "Let's eat in my room so we don't get your nice bed dirty."

They plopped down on his futon. Kyo had invested in a laptop a while ago, so they turned on a gameshow, one they liked to laugh at together over how stupid it was. Tohru leaned against Kyo's shoulder. He wrapped an arm around her waist, using his free hand to eat. The silence was comfortable, but Kyo couldn't help but flit his gaze over to his dresser every once in a while. He hoped she wouldn't notice.

She did notice his heightened nerves, in the way his hand shook slightly against her hip and the way his eyes wandered to the other side of the room, particularly his dresser. He couldn't possibly be hiding anything from her in there; it wasn't like him. She had no idea what he was so nervous about, but figured he'd tell her when he was ready. It stung to think about him being afraid to confide in her, though, after how vulnerable she'd been with him lately…

Outside, thunder boomed in the sky, so suddenly and loudly that it made Tohru jump and squeak. Kyo just groaned. He set down his empty bowl and pulled Tohru closer, nuzzling his face into her hair.

"Th-that was surprising. It was sunny earlier," she said, still sounding startled. She turned her attention to Kyo then, though, tilting her head so she could see his face. She reached up and ran her fingers through his hair. "Do you not feel well?"

As ridiculous and embarrassing as it was to admit now that the curse was broken, Kyo did still get dragged down by bad weather. There was no use in trying to hide it around Tohru. He nodded. She smiled gently and pressed a kiss to his temple. "What can I do?"

"Can I have a hug?" he mumbled, tone muffled by her hair.

She nodded and shifted until she was resting in his lap, her legs slung across him and her arms around his neck. Kyo sighed in contentment, tightening his grip on her waist.

"Kyo-kun? You're going to squish me," she commented, laughing lightly. He relaxed.

"Sorry."

At some point, they moved to lie down on Kyo's futon, still tangled in each other's arms. Tohru could hear Kyo's breathing even out, and his hold on her began to slack slightly. It was only mid-afternoon, but he could probably use some extra sleep, she decided. She wouldn't mind joining him for a nap.

"Kyo-kun," she whispered, leaning forward. She held her lips against his forehead, kissing him while she waited for him to answer. Finally, he hummed in response. "Can I borrow a t-shirt?"

"'Course," he mumbled. Tohru was still in a skirt and blouse. She had perfectly good pajamas in her room, of course, but she often asked to borrow his clothes, claiming they smelled like him. And Kyo certainly wasn't going to complain about seeing her lie next to him in just her underwear and an oversized t-shirt of his, of course. He sat up and rubbed his eyes, brain still fogged by the pull of sleep. "I'm gonna go get some water. Just take whichever one you want."

As he left the room, Tohru headed over to his dresser and pulled open the top drawer. She grabbed the t-shirt that was on top, that horrid yellow one he loved so much for some reason, and was about to shut the drawer again when something caught her eye.

A box.

It was a small cube, black and velvety. Tohru of course had an inkling of what it _might_ be, but didn't want to let herself imagine something outlandish like that. Her fingers hesitated over the knob of the drawer, though, and her curiosity got the best of her. Hands shaky, she lifted the box and opened it just a bit. Her eye was met with the sparkle of an engagement ring. She snapped the box shut again. For a brief moment, Tohru wondered if it was for someone else. It couldn't possibly be for her. Kyo had said he wanted to propose someday, but he'd just said that _yesterday_. She'd been such a mess lately; who in their right mind would want to pledge their life to her right now?

She felt her stomach do flips. Kyo entered the room behind her, freezing when he saw what she was holding.

"T-tohru?"

"Kyo-kun," she whispered, turning to look at him with wide eyes. She was stuck between feeling shock about what she'd found, and guilt about the fact that she'd been snooping. "What's this?"

Kyo covered his face with one hand, rubbing at his red cheeks. "Damn it…I didn't think that hiding spot through, I guess."

She just looked at him, waiting for some kind of answer. Finally, he sighed and took the box from her. He opened it, showing her the ring inside. She glanced at it, chewed on her bottom lip, and looked back up at him for an explanation.

"I…" he faltered, then tried again. "I had a whole plan, but now you're just gonna be expecting it."

Tears stung the corners of Tohru's eyes, fogging her vision. She felt her breath catch in a sob. Kyo couldn't tell if this was good crying or bad, so he just wrapped his arms around her and kissed the top of her head.

"You're--" she mumbled, pressing her face into his chest.

"Yeah...I wanted to make it special for you, but…"

She pulled back and looked at him, eyes still watery. "You could propose to me with nothing and it would still be special." She apparently also liked the ring, though, because she reached for it.

"Hey." He clicked his tongue in disapproval. Weight was being lifted from his chest. Not only did she know now, it was incredibly clear that she was saying yes. "At least let me get down on one knee."

Tears were flowing freely down her cheeks now, but Tohru nodded anyway. A bit awkwardly, Kyo lowered himself down onto the carpet of his bedroom, using one hand to hold the ring box and the other to grip Tohru's.

"Will you marry me, Tohru?" he asked softly. She nodded immediately, another sob escaping her throat. With trembling hands, he took the ring out of the box...and promptly accidentally dropped it on the floor. She giggled as she watched him scramble for it, but melted into more tears when he finally got ahold of it and slipped it onto her finger.

"This is crazy," she murmured. Kyo stood and pulled her close, resting his cheek against hers. "Are you sure?" she added after a moment.

He laughed, using a hand to reach up and dry his own eyes. "Very."

"We're so young. And so poor," she laughed, rubbing at her damp face.

Kyo rolled his eyes and smiled. That was such an incredibly _Tohru_ thing to say. "It doesn't have to be right away," he reminded her. "We haven't even graduated yet. But...I wanted the promise to be there."

"I already knew," she whispered. "I knew we'd get married someday. You didn't need to go to all this trouble right now."

"Trouble? I wanted to." He pulled back, holding her at arms' length and fixing an intense gaze on her eyes. "I'm not going anywhere. I want you forever. Got it?"

She nodded, trying to blink away the fresh tears that were gathering in her eyes. "Thank you. I love you."

"I love you, too. So, so much. Don't ever forget that, 'kay?"

Tohru smiled softly and let Kyo use his sleeve to wipe her cheeks dry.

"Kyo," she said firmly after a moment. He raised an eyebrow at her sudden drop of the honorific.

"Mmm?"

"I think we should go," she continued slowly. "Wherever that job is, I want to go."

"Tohru--"

"No. It'll be good for both of us. As long as I'm with you, I can do it."

He was confused, but tried to smile a bit. He leaned down to kiss her forehead. "Are you sure?"

"Very," she replied, parroting his words from earlier back to him. "Call him and accept the job, Kyo-kun."

"You didn't think about it for very long."

She shrugged. "I guess I didn't need to. Just like you didn't need to think much about going out and buying this ring this morning."

Kyo stood up straight again, shoulders stiff. "W-what? How did you…?"

Tohru giggled. "Kyo-kun, you don't get it--I know everything about you."

He laughed in return and drew her in close, capturing her lips with his own.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Furuba socials: @riceballcatfb on Instagram, Tumblr, and Twitter 
> 
> Multi-fandom Instagram: @kawaii.anime.screenshots


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